Tea Kettle

Buying a kettle is more than buying the most expensive or the most beautiful kettle on the shelf. To buy the best tea kettle, you have to know it’s peculiarities, including what material it is made of, the design, capacity, features and so on. When you know all of this, you'll be able to pick the one that can make you the perfect cup of tea you so love.

That’s why we have taken our time to compile a simple yet detailed guide about portable tea kettles to help you make the best choice when you shop for a tea kettle.

Benefits of a Tea Kettles

You may have been making your tea wrong. Take a look at 5 reasons you need to have a tea kettle at home.

• Hot water stays hot: A tea kettle is a home or office appliance that heats water for tea or other hot beverages. And the good thing about a stovetop tea kettle is that it retains heat. Therefore, your hot water can remain hot after a long while.
• It’s safer than teapots or ordinary pots: Hot water can be dangerous especially if the steam burns or it pours on the body. However, the design and compact build of a stovetop tea kettle makes it safe to use.
• It is fast: You can now say goodbye to spending hours boiling water for tea. With an enamel tea kettle, 5 minutes is too much to heat your water for tea.
• Portable: Most electric tea kettles, unlike teapots or other cooking pots are very portable and classy. They fit very well into a modern home and can be used in an office as well.
• Other options are open: With a cast iron tea kettle, or electric one you don’t have to be stuck making only tea. You can use the hot water to make any other kind of hot beverage you like (or even use it while cooking).

What To Look for In a Tea Kettle

As we’ve mentioned earlier, we’ve compiled a buying guide so that you don’t make a costly mistake when shopping for a perfect this type of tea makers . The following things are what you should consider when choosing a portable kettle for your home.

Material

Tea kettles come in many materials, ranging from stainless steel, cast iron, aluminum, copper, glass, ceramic, porcelain, and plastic. Plastic and Aluminum are lightweight and cheap. However, plastic kettles can leach chemicals into the water, and aluminum is more prone to scratch and dents.

Porcelain kettles are easy to clean, but they are not very durable because they rust easily. Ceramic kettles have a beautiful appearance, are easy to clean, and do not tamper with the physical or chemical properties of the water. However, they are very fragile, hence not very durable. The same fragility goes for beautiful glass tea kettles. Copper is more durable but is harder to maintain. It also loses heat as quickly as it heats up.

Cast-iron is highly-durable and effective. It could almost be the best tea kettle, only that it is very heavy and expensive. Finally, Stainless steel tea kettle is durable, lightweight, and retains heat. It is also easy to clean. It is also the most commonly used type of tea kettle.

Cook top Electric or For Stove Top

This is another thing you should consider — how would you like to be heating the water? You could pick an electric tea kettle that requires only the use of electricity to work. However, it is not a good camping tea kettle because of the unavailability of electricity during camping. Stovetop kettles are better options for this occasion. But they require a stove (it’s in the name). There are also some tea kettles for gas stoves and other types for electric stoves, depending on which stove type you have in your kitchen. Some tea kettles types likewise work best with an oven or a microwave.

Design

The two aspects you should be concerned about when it comes to tea kettles are the handle and the spout. The spout affects how the water would be poured out from the kettle. A thinner spout is more controllable, and short spouts can spill easily. The handle is what determines how comfortable the kettle is to hold and pour.

Capacity

The size of the tea kettle is another important thing to pay attention to when picking one from the shelf. There are mini tea kettles, small sizes, and medium and very large tea kettles. The size you need should depend on how often you take tea, how many people would drink the tea, and where you plan to store your kettle.

Features

You can also buy a tea kettle with some exciting features to ease out the process of heating water — a steam-activated whistling tea kettle whistles when the water is boiling. A heatproof handle keeps the handle cool even as the kettle is heating in the oven or microwave.

An automatic shut-off in an electric kettle automatically turns off the kettle when it begins to bubble. Some kettles also have a ‘keep-warm setting that keeps the water warm while you sip your cup of tea. The rapid boil is another feature in some kettles. It boils the water rapidly (in a few minutes) and is good for when you hurry.

Water-level indicators in kettles show the level of the water in the kettle. There is also a temperature control to set the temperature or a lime scale filter to filter out the minerals that build up in most tap water.

Types of Tea Kettle

The types are divided into the kind of material used to make them, the feature, and the way they are used to heat water.

Based on the Material

• Copper tea kettle: It is made from copper, highly durable and heavy.
• Aluminum tea kettle: Lightweight, heats water with metal conduction, and is easy to clean.
• Stainless Steel tea kettle: The most commonly used type. Very durable and lightweight, but has a very simple look.
• Glass tea kettle: Fragile and cannot retain heat for too long.
• Ceramic kettle: Beautiful and fragile. Maintains the chemical and physical properties of the water.
• Porcelain kettle: Similar to ceramic.
• Cast-Iron tea kettle: Heavy, highly durable. Maintains heat the longest.

Based on the features

• Whistling tea kettle: The kettle whistles when the water is boiled.
• Tea kettle with infuser: It has an infuser that does the job of teapot in a tea kettle.
• Tea kettle with temperature control: Helps to maintain the temperature of the water, or set the temperature.

Based on the cook top

• Electric tea kettle: Works with electricity.
• Traditional Stove top tea kettle: Is placed directly on fire to heat water.
• Gas cooker stove top tea kettle: Works best with gas cooker.
• Electric cooker stove top tea kettle: Works best with electric cookers.
• Glass cooker tea kettle: Can be used in an oven.

Best Tea Kettle for home

So what is the best tea kettle for your home? It depends. If you are looking for something fast, and portable then an electric tea kettle is the best choice. But if you need something more homely for tea parties and small meetings, then get yourself a ceramic tea kettle.

Conclusion

It can be very frustrating when you don’t know which tea kettle to pick. But we assure you that when you have the right guide with you; it would be as easy as pouring water into a kettle. We hope that you find this article helpful when choosing the right tea kettle.

FAQs

How to use a tea kettle?

It isn’t hard at all to use a tea kettle. First, clean your kettle, then pour water and wait for it to boil. If it is an electric kettle, plug it in. And if it is a stovetop type, place it on top of a cooker or a stove.

How to clean a tea kettle?

Different tea kettle types have varying cleaning methods. Some are hand-washed, and others can be soaked into the dishwasher. Check the manual guide of the kettle to know the safest way to clean your kettle.

How to clean an electric tea kettle?

An electric kettle is very easy to clean. However, turn it off and unplug it first before attempting to clean. However, do not soak an electric kettle in water.

How to descale a tea kettle?

You can descale a tea kettle naturally using vinegar and tap water. Mix the two ingredients with equal amount of both and fill your kettle with it. Boil the mixture in your kettle and allow it to cool. Then pour it away and rinse the kettle.

What kettle is good for home use?

The best tea kettle for a home depends on the needs of the home. How many family members are present? That determines if they need a medium sized tea kettle or a large kettle.

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