Okay, I’m laughing hard as hell at the response to microwaving water for tea- as a Foolish American who is only now trying to get around to Tea Enjoyment (and figuring out what is good and how- I have oh-so-proudly figured out a London Fog, that should speak volumes), I gotta ask what the difference is between kettle tea and microwave tea. At the risk of gettling a gauntlet thrown at me from the entire population of the UK, isn’t hot water…. Hot…. Water?? Or is there some extra step to kettle tea? Arcane ritual? Blood sacrifice?? Maybe tea kettle scream just go brrrrr???
I'll restrain my utter fury for now, because you're one of my favourite people and you deserve an explanation
My biggest problem is that microwaves heat the water unevenly. Microwave water has some patches boiling, some patches cold; you have no control over the overall temperature. A lot of the time the steam you see coming off microwaved water doesn't mean its boiled all the way through, it's just the top layer of vapour peeling off. And different teas actually require different temperatures; Earl Grey is good at 100c so you can boil the shit out of the water but green tea, for example, needs 70-80c and will actually scorch in too-hot water which ends up making it taste really bitter and disgusting, completely ruining the tea.
In a kettle, it heats from a plate on the bottom, and the convection current in the water means it heats evenly all the way through, hence the term 'rolling boil'. Most houses in England have an electric kettle where you can choose the right temperature for the right tea; mine has a selection from 70 to 100. The water will be at the correct temperature all the way through and you won't burn your tea/not make it hot enough to release the flavour.
Also, you guys don't even pray to the Goddess of the Rivers via blood sacrifice to release the correct aromas. Smfh
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