# Is an electric kettle an OK way to make tea? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 22, 2017, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729 "2017-03-22T01:24:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/61 "2017-03-29T01:09:42Z")
Have you tried a different brand of teabag? ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/62 "2017-03-29T04:07:38Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > No matter how slow I pour, the tea bag rises to the top of the surface and floats. Now that I think about it - when I use tea bags, I usually pour the hot water into the cup or pot first, and then drop the tea bag into the hot water. Try that. If you do it the other way around, you end up with a bubble of air inside a wet tea bag. The bubble is trapped by the surface tension of the water and cannot escape. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2017, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/63 "2017-03-29T11:39:25Z")
I’m English and work in a cafe, so I make a lot of tea, using tea bags; I always pour the water over, rather than add the bag to a cup full over water, unless someone requests a very weak tea. It normally floats just under the surface either way, once it settles, but the turbulence from pouring the water definitely speeds up the process, which IMO, provides a superior flavour. If it’s floating so high that it’s not infusing properly, I’m pretty sure that’s a fault of the tea bag, not your pouring procedure. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2017, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/64 "2017-04-02T22:02:21Z")
If anyone cares, I just found at that there is…and I’m not kidding about this…a scammer scamming specifically on electric kettles on Amazon. Somehow, this person evades Amazon’s lockout and keeps remaking new stores that claim to sell kettles for $6. The same that retails on Amazon for $19.99. I bought one from him and have not received it. I saw his reviews are now listed as all “one star scam” reviews. I have requested a refund and re-bought from Amazon fulfillment store for $15, still a really good deal. Buyers beware! I’m sure Amazon will refund my money in a couple days. ---
**Author:** ![Deeg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/deeg/32/2955_2.png) [@Deeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deeg)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2017, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/65 "2017-04-03T17:17:51Z")
> [@NetTrekker](#): > > Skip all the pretense and use the coffee maker you already have. Fill with water, drop a couple teabags in the carafe, turn it on and very soon you will have a nice pot of tea. Ack, no! That will result in coffee-flavored tea. Blasphemy! ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2017, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/66 "2017-04-05T07:22:25Z")
> [@Anny\_Middon](#): > > When you get your teapot, get a cozy for it too…The cozy will however help keep your tea hot for a while. They also make for a spiffy impromptu hat whilst you’re flaffing around in the kitchen, waiting for the kettle to boil. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2017, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/67 "2017-04-05T08:00:40Z")
“Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn’t try it on. ” - Billy Connolly ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2017, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/68 "2017-04-05T11:11:44Z")
> [@Pixel\_Dent](#): > > Irish & English - Full Boil, let steep 5 minutes Ahem. Black Indian tea (which is what’s The Irish and English drink) ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2017, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729/69 "2017-04-05T11:18:02Z")
Mahaloth, I also vote for making a cup at a time and just making the tea in the cup you’re going to drink from. The extra step of making it in a pot is going to get old for you doing it at work. Either that or just make it in a Mr. Coffee. Put the tea bags in the coffee pot, not in the filter basket and let the machine put the hot water over them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-an-electric-kettle-an-ok-way-to-make-tea/782729.md?page=3)