# Brits must have a kettle on the stovetop at all times...? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 25, 2017, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698 "2017-11-25T19:46:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/41 "2017-11-27T17:21:08Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > IME, “cocoa” as a beverage is a fairly thin concoction of sweet milk chocolate and hot milk (or occasionally (shudder) water). :o Can I at least microwave the milk? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/42 "2017-11-27T17:55:12Z")
I do the same. It also makes for a nice very speedy \*cafe au lait \*first thing in the morning. Like this morning. 🙂 Although that also sometimes makes for a less-nice entire-microwave-oven-interior-_au-lait_. Like Saturday morning. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/43 "2017-11-27T18:07:23Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > A reference to the Monty Python “Fish Licence” skit. La de da and fiddle dee dee, it’s Eric the half a tea ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/44 "2017-11-27T19:14:46Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > :o Can I at least microwave the milk? Heathen! ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/45 "2017-11-27T19:16:48Z")
I see Meghan Markle has passed the Tea-Making (Royal Family Level) exams. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/46 "2017-11-27T19:21:24Z")
> [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > I see Meghan Markle has passed the Tea-Making (Royal Family Level) exams. 🙂 Yes, she’s doing quite well. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/47 "2017-11-27T19:59:01Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Is it true that the EKEA has trucks they drive around with special antennas in them that can detect electric kettles in the flats they pass? Yes. But they’ll let it go as long as the heat signature indicates the resident has left the top off so it “really boils.” > [@LSLGuy](#): > > Bolding mine. > > As a Yank I’ll defer to the Brits _et al_ about the OP’s main question. But I gots ta know: how the heck do kettles and hot chocolate go together? > . . . I learned a few years ago to make it Mayan fashion, and I’ll never go back. Cocoa powder with a dizzying array of spices, including hot pepper seeds, goes into boiled water. Then when it’s all dissolved and the spices have bloomed, add about a tablespoon of heavy cream. The difference in scent and flavor after the cream is added will knock your socks off. He claimed it is even better with goat’s milk, but I haven’t tried it. Probably not my cuppa. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/48 "2017-11-27T20:44:40Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Heathen! :eek: OK, I will get out a saucepan dedicated to hot chocolate prep. I will be ready no matter what Enforcers happen by. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/49 "2017-11-27T22:17:10Z")
> [@glee](#): > > I’m 64 and have lived in England all my life. > . . . > I also don’t know anyone who has a stove (unless you count an Aga.) > . . . Nonsense. All ovens are stoves. It’s just that not all stoves are ovens. Just like some stoves have a cooktop, but that doesn’t make it a range. A stove is any box made for heating indoors without burning the building down. (Most furnaces technically qualify.) Sometimes a stove has a cooktop, which is heated by the burning fuel within. An oven is a box which gets hot and is configured for cooking food. Sometimes a stove has a big enough fuel burning resevoir that there is room to also bake inside of it, so that stove is also an oven. A range has a separate, dedicated heat source for the cooktop, it is not heated by the stove within. An AGA is a stove with a cooktop, and also an oven, but it is not properly a range. Hope that helps. d&r ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/50 "2017-11-27T23:30:46Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > The two terms are used interchangeably in my family. I have reported you to the Beverage Council. Please stay where you are until the inspector arrives. (They said it may take up to two weeks to process my complaint). ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2017, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/51 "2017-11-27T23:53:58Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > A reference to the Monty Python “Fish Licence” skit. Thanks - I’ll have to look for that. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2017, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/52 "2017-11-28T23:55:45Z")
**Showing results for fish _license_** Search instead for fish licence ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/53 "2017-11-29T00:15:23Z")
The idea of having a kettle on the hob at all times is totally wrong. Water for tea MUST be freshly boiled. You have to run the tap for a while to ensure that there is no stale water, and then bring it to a ‘rolling’ boil. The loose tea leaves will already be in a warmed pot and the still bubbling water is added immediately. All this is for your own tea and for visiting royalty… Visiting tradesmen have their own method which involves adding several tea bags to a pot, adding hot water and leaving to ‘steep’ for some time until it takes on the consistency of black treacle; add several tablespoons of sugar and condensed milk from a tin. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/54 "2017-11-29T02:31:19Z")
Not that I would advise an Englishman how to make tea, since I’m 2 generations removed from the Mother country, but ISTM one could \*store \*the kettle on the hob as long as you used only freshly run properly de-staled water to fill it afresh each time. Cabinet space being notoriously short in English kitchens this seems a wise use of precious kitchen real estate. There’s not much else one could safely store on a hob. ---
**Author:** ![Staggerlee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/staggerlee/32/3134_2.png) [@Staggerlee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Staggerlee)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/55 "2017-11-29T14:18:57Z")
Maybe I’m no true Englishman, but I loathe stove-top kettles. The wailing whistle on them gives me such a start that I inevitably need a nice cup of tea to calm down from it. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/56 "2017-11-29T14:33:18Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > Can a policeman politely enter your home and check? There is a dedicated auxiliary agency of ladies of a certain age with hats, who will come in and tut. They may even ask if the cake is shop-bought. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/57 "2017-11-29T14:42:11Z")
Come to think of it, I think OP is thinking of the old days of the coal-fired kitchen range, which would always have a kettle warning on it, as the only available source of hot water, for when yer man came home from 't pit and needed a scrub down in 't tin bath while delivering home truths to the feckless son all’s with his nose in a book… ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/58 "2017-11-29T14:46:26Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > **Showing results for fish _license_** > Search instead for fish licence What’s your point? Licence is the noun; license is the verb. ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/59 "2017-11-29T17:22:48Z")
> [@Staggerlee](#): > > Maybe I’m no true Englishman, but I loathe stove-top kettles. The wailing whistle on them gives me such a start that I inevitably need a nice cup of tea to calm down from it. And they always seem to reach the whistling point just as you have your first contact lens balanced on your fingertip, ready to put in. Never the second so you have one eye in focus. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698/60 "2017-11-29T17:30:52Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > What’s your point? > > Licence is the noun; license is the verb. Webster’s has the “c” spelling as a secondary spelling to the “s” form, with no differentiation between noun and verb. Most spell-checkers will flag the “c” spelling unless told to accept it. :dubious: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brits-must-have-a-kettle-on-the-stovetop-at-all-times/802698.md?page=4)