Tea Kettle Recipes Food Cooking International Guide
The Steaming Tea Kettle
By Fiona Harker
A steaming tea kettle whistling in the kitchen can bring back
fond memories, perhaps meaning it’s time to start the day,
or that it’s time to review your options and take a break
for an afternoon tea, or that a soothing remedy of a cup of tea
with some lemon and honey is about ready for us to sip and relieve
a sore throat.
While tea kettles can be used for a lot more than just boiling
tea, they were originally developed so that the hot water for
tea could reach the ideal steeping temperature on the stove and
allow for the perfect brewing of a batch of favorite tea.
First Cup Of Tea In The Morning
Typically, tea would be brewed first thing in the morning and
left in the kettle on the stove to keep warm so that it could
be served quickly if guests dropped by during the day.
Tea kettles have been in existence for many centuries, with their
oldest roots in the Asian countries of the far east, and can be
made from a variety of different materials such as cast iron,
aluminum, enamel over different metals, and nickel-plated copper,
and any other material that can stand up to repeated heating on
the top of a stove.
Over the years, the kettles have become not just functional pieces
but also serve as decorative pieces in many kitchens as well.
As kettles became more ornamentation in kitchens they began to
more often be manufactured with metals such copper and included
more interesting handles and enamel designs.
Tea Kettles Are Now Collectors Items
Since many tea kettles evolved from simple and utilitarian to
items of design and style, they have become items that collectors
enjoy accumulating right along with tea pots and tea cups and
other related items.
A tea kettle that is in good condition, that has a unique design
or style can be very valuable and such finds can often be found
at garage sales and flea markets in addition to antique malls.
Tea Kettles also are found in an array of colors, sizes and shapes
tea connoisseurs of each tend to be particular to the style that
suits them best. Collectors often seek out tea kettles that have
some sort of specialty element to them such as a unique variation
of shape or even because of a distinctive whistle.
Electric Tea Kettles
Electric tea kettles are most often made of aluminum,iron, silver,
steel, or a combination of plastic and one of these metals. They
are the fastest to heat the water, and have the advantage of convenience
and practically because they tend to use less energy that heating
up the stove top and are normally insulated for safety. They are
also typically lighter than stove-top kettles, so they are easier
to handle for older family members.
Most electric tea kettles have common components such as the
electric heating element, the thermostat to control both the water
temperature and to turn off the device when it is dry, an on-off
switch for manual control the the power cord.
You may also want to seek out additional safety features for
your tea kettle such as the option that will keep it from heating
the water if the lid is not properly closed.
About the Author:
Fiona Harker has written a number of articles on tea and food including
Tea Bags,
Green Tea,
White Tea,
Tea Maker,
Tea Cup.
Keep a lookout for more articles on this website.
Did You Know?
Is it better to prepare tea from a tea bag or from loose tea leaves?
While it is very popular nowadays to use
tea bags to brew tea, there are some drawbacks that you might
want to consider.
First, most of the tea found in tea bags sold commercially in
grocery stores is not the premium dry tea, but is commonly the
smaller broken leaves and even just the dust of from broken and
crushed tea leaves, resulting in a more harsh flavor.
The second problem is that, even if the bag is filled with a
good quality of tea leaf, most bags do not allow enough room for
the water to flow and completely draw the flavor from the leaves.
For these reasons, many tea connoisseurs prefer to use a tea
infuser and loose leaf tea for a better flavor and more control
over the final brew.
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