My New Teakettle

I’ve been wanting an electronic kettle, particularly one that turns off when it boils, for a while now. The good ones can be expensive ($70-125US), and I had been feeling guilty for wanting something that seemed excessive when compared to a stovetop kettle.

This past year, several things happened that made me change my mind. First, my neighbor’s house caught fire.



My brother and I spotted the smoke and my husband called the fire department within seconds, but the house was still severely damaged (luckily, no one was inside). The neighbor told us later that she’d left her teakettle on the stove and that is what started the fire.

Hmmmmmmm, maybe there's a good reason for that automatic shut-off. I started looking at Russell Hobbs kettles, but they weren’t appealing to me. So, I did some research on what people really liked in a good kettle:

• cordless kettle that removes from a base
  
• heating element that does not come in contact with the water (these tend to rust and suffer from chemical build-up)
  
• automatic shut-off when water boils
  
• good ergonomic shape, preferably with a handle that sits to the side of the lid (rather than above it)
  

This spring, I kept running into tea lovers who use the Chef’s Choice electric kettle. Even a hotel I stayed at had the kettles in their rooms (and I greatly appreciated it!). Finally, last weekend, the wonderful owners of Floating Leaves used just this kettle to brew up a variety of fabulous teas. Time for me to stop putting it off and finally buy the darned thing. Here’s my pot:

Chef'sChoice®-International, Deluxe Cordless Teakettle #685. Click to see photo and information.

It’s only been a few days, but I really like this kettle. The water brews in about half (or even a third) of the time it took on the stovetop, the heating element shuts down when the water boils, and it removes from the base effortlessly (becoming a cordless kettle). It comes with a strong recommendation from me.