Do americans have kettles?

[Rhienfo]

I remember reading something about Americans not really having kettles ages ago, and that boil water thread just reminded me of that.

Do Americans have kettles? here in Australia they are a common household appliance but I guess not in America? I also remember hearing that they do have them as well which is why I'm not sure.

Apparently some Americans use the word kettle for something I would call a pot/teapot which is interesting. Just In case that's you I'm referring to these electric ones that look like the image below.

[ReverbSlush]

America is a big place. There are millions of kettle using people here.  That said, lets say we're taking a very high level overview of Americans "in general". 

I would *not* be surprised if I visited someone's house and they did not have a kettle. 

I would also *not* be surprised if I visited someone's house and they did have a kettle.  BUT I might be surprised if they chose to use it for boiling water to make something like mac'n'cheese.  When we boil water, it's mainly for cooking, and it's mainly on a stove in a deep pot.  Our "grab and go" foods don't often require boiling water, either.  Our hot drink of choice is coffee, made by a coffee maker.  If you count that as a kettle, then everyone has one.

Noodles, Rice, Tea... these kettle-friendly foods aren't as culturally significant in the US as they are in other countries.

I'm making huge generalizations here of course.

[fohat.digs]

Many people in the US might use the word "kettle" for a pan, especially a very large one, which would more properly be a "pot"

The primary use of mine is heating water for my pour-over coffee carafe.

[NumPadEnjoyer]

I personally do but it's not something you'll find in every American home

[Rhienfo]

Many people in the US might use the word "kettle" for a pan, especially a very large one, which would more properly be a "pot"

The primary use of mine is heating water for my pour-over coffee carafe.

That interesting, I don't think anyone here would call that a kettle. Yeah I would probably call that a teapot or something.

America is a big place. There are millions of kettle using people here.  That said, lets say we're taking a very high level overview of Americans "in general". 

I would *not* be surprised if I visited someone's house and they did not have a kettle. 

I would also *not* be surprised if I visited someone's house and they did have a kettle.  BUT I might be surprised if they chose to use it for boiling water to make something like mac'n'cheese.  When we boil water, it's mainly for cooking, and it's mainly on a stove in a deep pot.  Our "grab and go" foods don't often require boiling water, either.  Our hot drink of choice is coffee, made by a coffee maker.  If you count that as a kettle, then everyone has one.

Noodles, Rice, Tea... these kettle-friendly foods aren't as culturally significant in the US as they are in other countries.

I'm making huge generalizations here of course.

Oh yeah I am definitely generalizing here, and you're probably right there. This just popped up in my head and thought I should post it for some reason.

Do you use a kettle? (If you are American)

[ddot]

Canadian here, but we have an electric one and we refer to it as a "kettle".  Similar to the image below.  Electric with glass sides.  Boiling water is kind of fun to watch.  Highly recommended for the educational value.  Mostly gets used for hot drinks: tea, hot chocolate, instant coffee, etc.

[Rhienfo]

Canadian here, but we have an electric one and we refer to it as a "kettle".  Similar to the image below.  Electric with glass sides.  Boiling water is kind of fun to watch.  Highly recommended for the educational value.  Mostly gets used for hot drinks: tea, hot chocolate, instant coffee, etc.

Show Image

A clear one like that would be cool to have, I never knew I needed something like that until now.

[udller]

i clicked this thread to see if they have the chips, but this is not about the chips

[Rhienfo]

i clicked this thread to see if they have the chips, but this is not about the chips

oh kettle chips are so good. Stopped eating them because I would eat like a whole bag instead of just a portion. Same with shapes.

[ReverbSlush]

Do you use a kettle? (If you are American)

We had a kettle growing up.. it was a metal one that went on the stove and had a whistle when the water was boiling.  That said, we didn't use it much at all.  I have a nice Stagg EKG gooseneck kettle that I use for coffee (pourover) and puerh (gaiwan).  But we're here on a mechanical keyboard forum, so we're all probably fancy like that.

[Rhienfo]

We had a kettle growing up.. it was a metal one that went on the stove and had a whistle when the water was boiling.  That said, we didn't use it much at all.  I have a nice Stagg EKG gooseneck kettle that I use for coffee (pourover) and puerh (gaiwan).  But we're here on a mechanical keyboard forum, so we're all probably fancy like that.

Oh yeah, I don't drink coffee so I didn't know about these expensive kettles and such, but I guess it makes sense if your trying to make the best coffee.

I'm very weird that I'm very value/cheap oriented when it comes to most things except keyboards for some reason, it's like the only hobby I have unless you count buying criterion blu rays as a hobby (I used to be into retro gaming but stopped when it became too expensive/started to emulate more)

[Pretendo]

Am American. I have one of these:



Not that exact model, but that brand. It's basically a thermos / dispenser that keeps water hot all the time and available at the press of a button. It can hold water to different temperatures based on your needs (I keep it near boiling for coffee pour-overs and black tea.)

This seems like an overkill product, but the US's 120v power makes it much less quick to heat up water with a traditional kettle, so when I had a regular electric kettle I didn't drink much tea. This makes the process so much quicker, and is also useful for things like ramen, or anything else you just need a little bit of boiling water for.

These aren't common in the US, btw. Moreso in Japan. I just happened to have a Japanese coworker for a time and got introduced to them.  Then I wound up buying them for allot of family members as housewarming gifts, and it's always the same story of "I thought this was a weird gift at first, but now would never not want to have one of these around."

[kajahtaa]

Have

Two kettle

Both electric

However

In California

And

Immediate family

Mix of

5 nationality

[Darthbaggins]

We have an electric here at work, and at home I have just a classic stove-top kettle that we've used for 20+ years since we make our own pitchers of Sweet Tea (mildly sweet).

[chyros]

This seems like an overkill product, but the US's 120v power makes it much less quick to heat up water with a traditional kettle

I happened to learn this this morning as well, and also that it's still much faster than a stovetop kettle apparently.

240 V guys! It's worth it! ;p

[tp4tissue]

This seems like an overkill product, but the US's 120v power makes it much less quick to heat up water with a traditional kettle

I happened to learn this this morning as well, and also that it's still much faster than a stovetop kettle apparently.

240 V guys! It's worth it! ;p

Yea 240v is the way to go. Puny america 120v boils water super slow. We need overclocked kettles that draw near 20amp.

[Sintpinty]

I remember reading something about Americans not really having kettles ages ago, and that boil water thread just reminded me of that.

Do Americans have kettles? here in Australia they are a common household appliance but I guess not in America? I also remember hearing that they do have them as well which is why I'm not sure.

Apparently some Americans use the word kettle for something I would call a pot/teapot which is interesting. Just In case that's you I'm referring to these electric ones that look like the image below.

Show Image

I  use my kettle for ramen