There are really only two different types of tea kettles electric and stove top but do all tea kettles serve the same purpose absolutely they are designed to heat water, we will also be discussing what makes the best tea kettle that might suit your specific needs. You’ll be able to better decide which tea kettle suits your needs once you understand some of the basic differences between the types of kettles in this discussion.
The first teakettle will be discussing today is the stove top type because it’s the easiest and most commonly available teakettle on the market today also the least expensive out of the three types stove top kettles come in a variety of different materials including stainless steel, glass, copper, ceramic and cast iron to name a few different materials available. Everybody has their favorites for different reasons my favorites are stainless steel and glass do to the reason that they are the easiest to care for and keep it clean.
The second most common is the electric tea kettle the biggest upside to electric kettle is that on average it only takes 4 to 5 minutes to heat the water to your desired temperature where as the stove top kettle can take about 7 to 10 minutes. Many come equipped with water gauges and, in some cases marks to indicate the minimum amount of water needed for a safe operation. Also another common feature is an automatic shut off if there’s not enough water in the kettle for safe operation. They also have multiple temperature settings for different types of teas and stay warm features so you have a hot cup of tea now and also for later.
(Automatic Tea Maker – Not really a tea kettle per say more of a teakettle and teapot all in one but worth discussing.)
The third and final type is an automatic tea brewer is relatively new alternative; the automatic tea brewers are similar to a coffee maker but not quite, these machines are not a drip system like a coffeemaker but they do have a basket to hold loose or bag tea, on some of the machines the basket actually lowers down into the water and back up automatically when the desired water temperature is achieved they also have built in timers for steeping, and a keep warm timers. Unfortunately these machines are relatively new the prices are still quite high but again in time these prices will eventually come down.
It all boils down to fact that all tea kettles are designed to do one thing that is to heat water to a desired temperature to match the type of tea that you are preparing, the stovetop, electric or the automatic tea brewer all have their different plus’s and minus’s depending on what your preferences are, now you know some of the basics of what makes the best tea kettle choice for you are.