Kettles ...

[AimlessWanderer]

I have a cheapo electric kettle my brother gave me when I moved into this house, but I've also started clearing out the boat to sell it and brought home my Le Crueset cookware including the traditional kettle.

One of these ...



Electric kettle: Quicker to boil - element heats water directly. Cheapo white plastic, shortage of sockets means I have to faff around switching plugs at times. Auto off.

Gas Stove Top: Slower, less direct heating and uses more fuel (?) Looks good. Whistle.

I think I might be moving back to a stove top for a while and sticking the eleccy one in the back of the cupboard  ... but what's your preference (stove top or electric) and why?

[tattoosteve99]

I prefer wood fired. Easy to come by, here that is. I can control the amount of hear easily, but I drink coffee instead of tea, unless its really good fresh tea from Japan.

[Lynn LeFey]

I don't want to derail this topic before it gets going, but I actually don't even own a kettle. I'm more of a coffee drinker, and when I DO drink tea, I just heat one mug of it in the microwave. I have also been known just to use a pan on the stovetop.

[AimlessWanderer]

I prefer wood fired. Easy to come by, here that is. I can control the amount of hear easily, but I drink coffee instead of tea, unless its really good fresh tea from Japan.

  I think the biggest thing I'm going to miss about the boat is the big cast iron wood burning range

So I take it you're generally an electric coffee machine gal Lynn? (I don't have one)

[Syph007]

For home use I prefer the internal element type, as you said, more energy efficient.

We have a see through one, and for some reason I like to watch it boil.

[Lynn LeFey]

So I take it you're generally an electric coffee machine gal Lynn? (I don't have one)

Yep. I've got one of the ones that brews one cup at a time. I drink either 1 or 2 cups a day. By 'cup' I mean mug, not an actual measurement, but I think you get the idea. It's a Black and Decker 'Brew N Go'.

I had an old copper kettle for a long time, but finally got rid of it after it sat unused for like 10 years.

[firiki]

 

For home use I prefer the internal element type, as you said, more energy efficient.

We have a see through one, and for some reason I like to watch it boil.

(Image removed from quote.)

It must be mesmerizing watching it boil!! Ever thought of putting pastry colours in it ? I noticed that tea tastes funny using those internal element boilers since I can't really control temperature and it cools down soon too . I drink tea using the coffee machine (rarely used to make coffee anymore) to get the water hot and just add some cool water depending on the tea's variety. Could someone provide the name of a well-known english tea kettle, supposedly the traditional thing? I was reading an article about it some years ago and really liked the design but don't remember what it was called.

[firiki]

By the way, I like espresso very much but nothing beats this kind of coffee for me (although I'd choose tea everyday) :
I suggest you try it if possible. I understand it may feel weird as the coffee residues stay in your cup but it's worht trying in my opinion. And no, I don't use the espresso bar to make me tea

[AimlessWanderer]

It must be mesmerizing watching it boil!! Ever thought of putting pastry colours in it ? I noticed that tea tastes funny using those internal element boilers since I can't really control temperature and it cools down soon too . I drink tea using the coffee machine (rarely used to make coffee anymore) to get the water hot and just add some cool water depending on the tea's variety. Could someone provide the name of a well-known english tea kettle, supposedly the traditional thing? I was reading an article about it some years ago and really liked the design but don't remember what it was called.

I'm not quite sure whether you're referring to a kettle like I showed in the OP, a teapot or a billy can 

Did you mean one of THESE?

[firiki]

I'm not quite sure whether you're referring to a kettle like I showed in the OP, a teapot or a billy can 

Smurf I meant a teapot. Have looked in the web with no luck. It has this curved neck (how is it called) that nevers spills tea it seems. Any help would be great. Thanks

[AimlessWanderer]

Finding a teapot with a spout that never spills or drips is like trying to find a supermarket trolley without a dodgy wheel 

I will have a look for you though 

[AimlessWanderer]

WTF??? 

[kkokkolis]

I never used a traditional kettle since I married (20 years ago 20 days from now). We use an electric kettle (only we call it a boiler here). But my mother used a traditional, the one that whistles. The difference is speed and this is a great difference. We use the boiler for tea, chamomile etc and for speed boiling water for pasta. Coffee is sometimes espresso or capuccino but 99% good, old turkish coffee (called with many other ethnic names also), near boiled in a pot. Whatever it is called it is the best coffee.


No kettle or machine can do that.

[firiki]

WTF??? 
(Image removed from quote.)

Helps you make a full-bodied tea, with lots of flavour. It also gives your tea a great colour and spices up your dull moments in life
I'm inclined to ask once more, WHY, oh why would someone make something like this? Why do I suddenly feel sick? WHYYY?? (I could be the orange cat in this video)

Edit: I admit this video comes to my mind quite often when I'm wondering "why?". Oh, well.

[Pacu]

I use a target kitchen aid stove top whistling scuttle as a slow boil makes for some stout iced sweet tea.



 

[nuphoria]

What is that cat on?!

Lynn, I found that many of my friends in the US didn't have kettles either. Tea is a much bigger thing over here I suppose, and I eventually caved in to the lure of a coffee maker too. Love the thing

We do still have an electric kettle though, which gets used for a lot of stuff including tea

[firiki]

What is that cat on?!

British flair
That cat gets astonished at times and loses all sense of humor:  A toilet seat for my tea!? With flowers on it!?

(Image removed from quote.)
No kettle or machine can do that.

Nice picture and a true statement IMO

[Steinar]

  Coffee from a cezve is great! Pretty rare around these parts, though.

[Gareth]

Joining in on a slightly dated thread i know, but here is my hob-top kettle:


another Le Creuset.

All the points Al made in the OP are perfectly true, and for a quick cuppa in the morning I'll use an electric kettle, but if you have a little more time then there is just something more satisfying about boiling up some water in a proper kettle.

As for a non-drip teapot have a look at the London Pottery Globe range, I have a 2 cup one in matt black and it has never dripped once.

[Cupboard]

I did some rough calculations a while back and found that boiling water on a gas hob costs about the same as boiling it in a kettle. Gas is cheaper than electricity but the electric kettle is more efficient at getting the heat in to the water rather than the room. Assuming it's summer and the spare heat from the hob is wasted rather than reducing your heating bill, that approximately cancels out the reduced cost.

As I say definite back of the envelope calculations and completely irreverent for me as I'm not on mains gas.

[Pacu]

i do loathe electric ovens having grown up with natural gas. Gas cooks better. When i finally buy a house it's gonna be gas.

[firiki]

( Are glass teapots horrible? )

As for a non-drip teapot have a look at the London Pottery Globe range, I have a 2 cup one in matt black and it has never dripped once.

So, you're saying there's no fixed traditional style. Some article that was!
Thanks for your suggestion. The black matt is great and they had one in dark green that's out of stock .

[Gareth]

I'm not a teapot historian or anything, but that globe style is at least 'typical' if not 'traditional'.  I have had quite a few pots over the years that all look similar but that one from the London Pottery is the first one I've had that didn't drip at all.

[Gareth]

I don't want to derail this topic before it gets going, but I actually don't even own a kettle. I'm more of a coffee drinker, and when I DO drink tea, I just heat one mug of it in the microwave. I have also been known just to use a pan on the stovetop.