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A kettle, sometimes called a tea kettle or teakettle, is a device specialized for
boiling Boiling or ebullition is the rapid phase transition from liquid to gas or vapor, vapour; the reverse of boiling is condensation. Boiling occurs when a liquid is heated to its boiling point, so that the vapour pressure of the liquid is equal to ...
water, commonly with a ''lid'', ''spout'', and ''handle''. There are two main types: the ''stovetop kettle'', which uses heat from a hob, and the ''electric kettle'', which is a
small Small means of insignificant size Size in general is the Magnitude (mathematics), magnitude or dimensions of a thing. More specifically, ''geometrical size'' (or ''spatial size'') can refer to three geometrical measures: length, area, or ...
kitchen appliance with an internal
heating element A heating element is a device used for conversion of electric energy into heat, consisting of a heating resistor and accessories. Heat is generated by the passage of electric current through a resistor through a process known as Joule heating. He ...
.


Etymology

The word ''kettle'' originates from Old Norse ''ketill'', "
cauldron A cauldron (or caldron) is a large cookware and bakeware, pot (kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in r ...
". The Old English spelling was ''cetel'' with initial ''che-'' ʃlike 'cherry', Middle English (and dialectal) was ''chetel'', both come (together with German ''Kessel'' "cauldron") ultimately from Germanic ''*katilaz'', that was borrowed from Latin ''catillus'', diminutive form of ''catinus'' "deep vessel for serving or cooking food", which in various contexts is translated as "bowl", "deep dish", or "funnel".


Stovetop kettles

A modern stovetop kettle is a metal vessel with a flat bottom used to heat water on a stovetop or hob. They usually have a handle on top, a spout, and a lid. Some also have a steam
whistle A whistle is a musical instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It is a type of Fipple, fipple flute, and may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a s ...
that indicates when the water has reached its boiling point. Kettles are typically made with
stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...
but can also be made from copper or other metals.


Electric kettles

In countries with 200240V
mains electricity Mains electricity, utility power, grid power, domestic power, wall power, household current, or, in some parts of Canada, hydro, is a general-purpose Alternating current, alternating-current (AC) electric power supply. It is the form of electri ...
, electric kettles are commonly used to boil water without the necessity of a stove top. The heating element is typically fully enclosed, with a power rating of 2–3 kW. This means that the current draw for an electric kettle is up to 13A, which is a sizeable proportion of the current available for many homes: the main fuse of most homes varies between 20 and 100 amps. In countries with 120 V mains electricity, twice as much current is drawn for the same power. In modern designs, once the water has reached its boiling point, the kettle automatically deactivates, preventing the water from boiling away and damaging the heating element.


Development

Electric kettles were introduced as an alternative to stovetop kettles in the latter part of the 19th century. In 1893 the Crompton and Co. firm in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
started featuring electric kettles in their catalogue. Although these kettles were quite primitive as the heating element couldn't be immersed in the water. Instead, a separate compartment underneath the water storage area in the kettle was used to house the electric heating element. The design was inefficient even relative to the conventional stove-top kettles of the time. In 1902, the 'Archer' electric kettle made by Premier Electric Heaters in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
, England, was marketed as a luxury item. It had an element sealed in the base of the kettle (not exposed to water), and was one of the first kettles with a boil-safe device. In 1922, Leslie Large, an engineer working at Bulpitt & Sons of Birmingham, designed an element of wire wound around a core and sheathed in a metal tube. The element could be immersed directly into water which made the kettle much more efficient than stovetop kettles. In 1955, the newly founded British company
Russell Hobbs Russell Hobbs is a British manufacturer of Home appliance, household appliances. Formed in 1952 by William Russell and Peter Hobbs (engineer), Peter Hobbs, it became the primary kettle maker in the United Kingdom marketplace in the 1960s. Subj ...
brought out its stainless steel K1 model as the first fully automatic kettle. A
bimetallic strip A bimetallic strip or bimetal strip is a strip that consists of two strips of different metals which expand at different rates as they are heated. The different expansion rates cause the strip to bend one way if heated, and in the opposite dire ...
, heated through a pipe by the steam produced as the water comes to the boil, flexes, and cuts off the current. As little steam is produced before boiling occurs, the bimetallic thermostat is set to activate well below , thus this design works even at higher altitudes where the boiling point is significantly lower. The design has since been widely adopted by other manufacturers.


Whistling kettles

A whistling kettle is a kettle fitted with a device that emits an audible
whistle A whistle is a musical instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It is a type of Fipple, fipple flute, and may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a s ...
when the water in the kettle starts to boil. The action of
steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...
passing through the device causes vibration, in turn creating the sound, known in physics as a
tone hole A tone hole is an opening in the body of a wind instrument which, when alternately closed and opened, changes the pitch (music), pitch of the sound produced. Tone holes may serve specific purposes, such as a trill hole or register hole. A tone ...
. The exact mechanism by which this occurs was not fully understood until a paper, ''The Aeroacoustics of a Steam Kettle'', was published by R. H. Henrywood, a fourth-year engineering
undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...
at the
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
, and A. Agarwal, his supervisor, in the journal ''
Physics of Fluids ''Physics of Fluids'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering fluid dynamics, established by the American Institute of Physics in 1958, and is published by AIP Publishing. The journal focus is the dynamics (physics), dynamics of gas ...
'' in 2013. Harry Bramson is the inventor of the whistling tea kettle.


Automatic tea kettles

Automatic tea kettles are meant to make tea brewing easier, built with the capability to make different kinds of tea without much input from the user. Once set, the automatic tea kettle brings the water to the specific temperature for preparing a given kind of tea, adds the tea to the water, and steeps the tea for the appropriate amount of time. This is because different types of teas must be brewed at different temperatures in order to create a full, balanced flavor. Often they will make a beeping sound to alert the user when the tea is ready, and maintain the temperature of the beverage after preparation.


Kettle gallery

File:Swan electric kettle, Museum of Liverpool.jpg, Swan electric kettle in brass, an early electric kettle at the
Museum of Liverpool The Museum of Liverpool in Liverpool, England, tells the story of Liverpool and its people, and reflects the city's global significance. It opened in 2011 as newest addition to the National Museums Liverpool group replacing the former Museum o ...
File:Caydanlik.jpg, Aluminium '' çaydanlık''. A unique instrument of
Turkish cuisine Turkish cuisine () is largely the heritage of Ottoman cuisine, Ottoman cuisine (Osmanlı mutfağı), European influences, Seljuk Empire, Seljuk cuisine and the Turkish diaspora. Turkish cuisine with traditional Turkic peoples, Turkic elements s ...
. File:Museu da BaronesaDSCF0130.JPG, Kettle on a
portable stove A portable stove is a cooking stove specially designed to be portable and lightweight, used in camping (recreation), camping, picnicking, backpacking (wilderness), backpacking, or other use in remote locations where an easily transportable means ...
at the Museu da Baronesa, Brazil File:Tea beauty in simplicity.jpg, Modest tea kettle boiling
water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...
over small
bottled gas Bottled gas is a term used for substances which are gaseous at standard temperature and pressure (STP) and have been compressed and stored in carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum, or composite containers known as gas cylinders. Gas state ...
at a
tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...
house. File:Graves kittel 1984.jpg, Graves kettle, 1984, a
postmodern Postmodernism encompasses a variety of artistic, cultural, and philosophical movements that claim to mark a break from modernism. They have in common the conviction that it is no longer possible to rely upon previous ways of depicting the wo ...
kettle with a bird-shaped whistle on the spout File:Electric kettle phillips white.JPG, A contemporary "jug"style electric kettle made from enameled metal and plastic File:Solar kettle.jpg, Solar powered kettle File:Kkettle.jpg, A Kelly kettle, designed to efficiently use the heat of a small fire in a chamber at the base File:USKettle.jpg, Copper coated cast iron stove tea kettle made between 1846 and 1860. Albany/Troy NY, USA File:Station Chai.jpg, An Indian aluminium kettle, popular in South Asia, used for making tea or boiling water File:Glass tea kettle, Kashgar.jpg, Glass tea kettle in
Kashgar Kashgar () or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is a city in the Tarim Basin region of southern Xinjiang, China. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, located near the country's border with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. For over 2,000 years, Kashgar ...
in 2010 File:Survival Kettle Red.jpg, Survival Kettle Red in 2019 File:Japanese Cast Iron Tea Kettle by Steven Depolo.jpg,
Tetsubin are Japanese cast-iron kettles with a pouring spout, a lid, and a handle crossing over the top, used for boiling and pouring hot water for drinking purposes, such as for making tea. ''Tetsubin'' are traditionally heated over charcoal. In the ...
(鉄瓶), Japanese cast iron kettle or teapot.


Similar devices

* A
cauldron A cauldron (or caldron) is a large cookware and bakeware, pot (kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in r ...
is a large kettle hung over an open fire, usually on an arc-shaped hanger called a ''bail''. In Hungary these are referred to as kettles. * A fish kettle is a long slim metal cooking vessel with a tight fitting lid to enable cooking of whole large fish such as
salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
. * A kettle grill is a
dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...
shaped grill with a rounded lid, resembling a cauldron. * A kettle drum is a kettle (cauldron) shaped drum.


See also

* Boiling vessel, water heating system in British tanks. * Coffeemaker * Kelly Kettle, specialized types of kettles for outdoor use, intended to use fuel more efficiently. * Kettle corn, a sweet variety of popcorn that is typically mixed or seasoned with a light-colored refined sugar, salt, and oil. It was traditionally made in cast iron kettles, hence the name. * Percolator *
Samovar A samovar (, , ) is a metal container traditionally used to heat and boil water. Although originating in Russia, the samovar is well known outside of Russia and has spread through Russian culture to other parts of Eastern Europe, as well as We ...
, a kettle with a central firepit and chimney for making
tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...
, originating in
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. *
Tea culture Tea culture refers to how tea is made and consumed, how people interact with tea, and the aesthetics surrounding tea drinking. Tea plays an important role in some countries. It is commonly consumed at social events, and many cultures have cre ...
*
Teapot A teapot is a vessel used for steeping tea leaves or a herbal mix in boiling or near-boiling water and serving the resulting infusion called tea; usually put in a teacup. It is one of the core components of teaware. Teapots usually have an ...
, a vessel with a spout, lid, and handle, for brewing and serving tea. * Teasmade, an English appliance that combined a kettle and a teapot to make tea automatically by a clock. *
Tetsubin are Japanese cast-iron kettles with a pouring spout, a lid, and a handle crossing over the top, used for boiling and pouring hot water for drinking purposes, such as for making tea. ''Tetsubin'' are traditionally heated over charcoal. In the ...
, a cast iron Japanese pot with a spout. * Windermere kettle *
The pot calling the kettle black "The pot calling the kettle black" is a proverbial idiom that may be of Spanish origin, of which English versions began to appear in the first half of the 17th century. It means a situation in which somebody accuses someone else of a fault whic ...
*
Teaware Teaware is a broad international spectrum of equipment used in the brewing and consumption of tea. Many components make up that spectrum, and vary greatly based upon the type of tea being prepared, and the culture, cultural setting in which it is ...
* Kettlebell, ball with handle.


References


Further reading

* Stevenson, Seth (Nov. 8, 2005)
"A Watched Pot"
''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
''. * {{Home appliances Cooking appliances Teaware Boilers (cookware) Articles containing video clips