kettle shopping

My Korean aluminum recently failed due to corrosive pitting from the inside. One day I found a poor of water inside the kitchen cabinet where I store it. Fortunately I discovered it shortly after it happen. I had learnt to love this simple and yet very effective kettle. The design an an archetype of kettles in many Asian countries including Chinese, Korean, and Japanese.

Before this kettle I had used a stainless steel one made in Japan for decades. While the stainless steel kettle is very well made, the achilles heel is the stainless steel. Stainless steel typically is the least desirable metal if heat transfer is a desired performance merit.

stainless steel kettle from Japan - photo left

My main use of my water kettle is to prepare pour-over filtered coffee and the Korean aluminum kettle is just perfect. It is cheap, boils very fast, and the elegantly shaped spout provides excellent control for pouring a thin stream (an attribute very important to prepare a good cup of pour-over coffee). Just the time it took for me to hand grind the coffee and prepare the paper filter the water is ready - that is how fast it boil enough water for a large cup.

It has been a major dissonance to make do with the stainless steel kettle. It is too big to pour a thin stream accurately and the worst it takes 3-4 time as long to boil the same amount of water due to the heavy gauge construction.

In my grocery shopping trip yesterday I set out to find an well made aluminum kettle. I knew the place to look is Korean stores. I stop by one that always has a big collection of cookware from Korea but all they have are stainless. Undeterred I set out again this morning targeting a few Korean stores in my neighborhood. I stop by this lady which I have came acquainted in my recent purchase from her. Of her collection all are stainless too except one very small one that costs only $9. I was hoping for a nicer looking one and slightly larger. I told her I would come back for it if I am unable to find one elsewhere.

I went to a Korean grocery store half a mile away which also has a cookware section. They have kettles big and small, but all but 2 are made of stainless steel. Of the two aluminum ones one is huge and is obviously not a prospect. This left with this one which has all the attributes I was looking for except the color is a bit teen feminine. In addition to one on display there is another one with slightly different color scheme.

lots of choices; decision, decision - i picked the lessor of two evils

I must have ponder undecided in the store for half an hour. Should I go else where in hope of finding a similar one but with a more subdue color scheme? No, for $21.99 I would just be wasting time and gasoline to look further.

i picked the one to the left - with less of the hello kitty pink

Other than the initial color shock it is a very nicely made kettle. The finish is very good with all SS rivets on the three joints. The lid fit with just the right amount of friction. The handle hinges and the whistle are all made of SS for longevity. On the bottom stamped with "made in korea". One more detail that testify to the excellent design and build quality is the satisfying snap action of the whistle lid. It cleanly snaps open or close and nowhere in between with just the right effort of a finger.

the hinged cap of the spout opens so wide making it very easy to fill the kettle at the faucet without having to remove the big lid, save me precious seconds of my life each day

the handle folds down for storage should you need it - this would make a nice kettle for carrying in tatyana.

The most overlook feature when choosing a kettle is the design of the spout. The spout on this kettle is cut in a slant to encourage clean release of the water as you pour.

it pours an elegant thin stream - note the slant cut of the spout

unlike the gold color aluminum kettle that failed from corrosive pitting, this one should last a very long time as the aluminum is protected by anodize finish. In all I am very happy to have found this.