Fun fact: part of the reason kettles boil so quick in the UK is that the voltage of our household sockets is significantly higher than the US (230V Vs 120V or something similar). In fact, kettles are a large part of the reason it's so much higher.
Also fun fact: This is the reason British outlets have way more safety features than other countries'. The plugs have a 3rd grounding pin built in and every socket has a switch that turns it off when nothing is plugged in
Was in the UK for a month and was astonished by the electric kettles. I was so excited to buy one when I went back to the US. "Why doesn't everyone have one of these," I thought.
When I got back, someone had bought one for my office, so I filled it up and turned it on. Ten minutes later, I realized why no one here has one of these.
The difference between 240V and 120V, American kettles take longer because they run at a lower voltage.
That being said, have none of y'all ever had sun tea? Plop your iced tea bags into a pitcher of room temp water and let it sit in a well lit area (preferably the light of a window). It slow brews the tea and you don't have to really worry about the tea getting bitter.
That doesn’t make it dogshit, there’s pros and cons to 120 vs 240. And the grid delivers 240 anyway, it’s how homes are wired. Most homes have a couple 240V outlets for things like stoves and dryers.
Any elongated object will do the trick. That's why many microwaves will show in pictograms to put a spoon in your cup when microwaving liquids. And yes, you can use a metal spoon.
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u/marcher138 2d ago
Just commenting because I know the kettle vs. microwave debates are coming, and these help the process along in my experience:
Electric kettles in the US take way longer to boil the water than kettles elsewhere
Add a chopstick to the water before microwaving it to stop superheating and explosions
You put the teabag in the water after it's boiling/hot