• Rustmilian@lemmy.world
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    Microwave : boils water
    Stovetop : boils water
    Electric stovetop : boils water
    Induction stovetop : boils water
    Electric kettle : boils water
    Open flame : boils water

    Bri’ish “people” : *pretending they have any sense of taste* “mIcRoWavE wA’eR taSte difFerenT.”

      • Wanderer@lemm.ee
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        3 months ago

        Americans always shit on British food then come over and remark at how great it is.

        Americans try to substitute good food with size, sugar and oil.

        • TheControlled@lemmy.world
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          3 months ago

          Haha I was just in England/UK/Britain and the food was whack, in England especially. The reason England is famous for its fish and chips is because it’s the only thing that is good.

          Curry is bomb though, but idk (honestly) if that counts. Colonizing India is the best thing that ever happened to England, sadly you cannot say the same going the other direction lol

          Haggis fucking rules though!

          • Wanderer@lemm.ee
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            3 months ago

            You speak like someone that has never met a British person never mind not having been to the UK.

            The national dish of the UK is curry. There is curry everywhere.

            I went to an Indian restaurant in America the women actually lived in the UK and we was chatting. I ordered a hot curry and it was fine.

            But the Mexican woman behind me ordered a vindaloo which is a pretty standard dish in the UK. The Indian said “you had this before? Its very hot”

            But “no but it’s fine I’m Mexican. I can handle my heat”

            “I’m just warning you it’svery hot. You sure you want it? Maybe you want x, y, z instead if you ve never had it”

            “I’m good with heat. My family always makes things spicy”

            Anyway it came and she ate less than 10% of it before getting it boxed up.

                • Rustmilian@lemmy.world
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                  3 months ago

                  Vindaloo is 175,000 to 500,000 scoville.
                  That’s on my not hot list.
                  Try 1.2 million scoville phaal curry, it’s one of my favorite warm up foods, now that shit is GOOD. 😋😍
                  You fail to realize hot food in America is literally a fucking sport, like you sign a waiver that says if you die they’re not liable kind of sport.

            • rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
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              3 months ago

              Eh, there are different kinds of “spicy”. Depending on how dead your receptors are after eating that “spicy” food before.

              So if you don’t notice some kind of spices anymore, and are going to try the same amount of something you’ve not tried before, it may be painful until your receptors are dead to that too.

              Personally I think it’s simply bad taste and bad cuisine to put large amounts of spices and salt into food. You should feel the actual flavor of what you are eating behind spices and herbs and salt and sugar and what not.

                • rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
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                  3 months ago

                  The objective part I’ve checked experimentally many times, so fsck right off.

                  The subjective part doesn’t require your approval. Think that moment in the “Green Book” movie about “salty” and people unable to cook.

        • LinyosT@sopuli.xyz
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          3 months ago

          I’m pretty sure Americans have a panic attack when what they’re eating isn’t at least 50% high fructose corn syrup.

      • Ilflish@lemm.ee
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        3 months ago

        I mean we can pick at things. Americans put marshmallows in their potatoes and eat cereal that are the same shade as crayons. Asians put cheese slices in their instant noodles. Italians eat Prosciutto and Melon, The French eat Escargot and Frog. At least most of these are consider guilty pleasures or 3am grub rather than cuisine.

    • db2@lemmy.world
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      3 months ago

      Is this some kind of beans on toast thing I’m too colonies to understand?

    • dingus@lemmy.world
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      Yeah I will never at all understand this weird superiority complex in the way in which people boil fucking water of all things. The result is the same.

      The reason why a kettle is nice is because it boils a large quantity of water quickly. If you only want a single cup, then a microwave is a great option if you don’t have or want a kettle.

    • Mr_Blott@lemmy.world
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      3 months ago

      In our defence (spelt correctly) all of the above are acceptable, except the microwave. Reasons being that a) the microwave doesn’t boil it evenly, and you get pockets of mega heated water that bubble up and splash up in the microwave, then drip off the manky ceiling of the microwave and into your cup. B) microwaves stink. I don’t know anyone that uses one for anything other than popcorn or melting butter. But if you’re using it to cook as well… 🤢

      • Rustmilian@lemmy.world
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        3 months ago
        1. Clean out your fuckin microwaves.
        2. Convection currents stir the water automatically, heating it unevenly doesn’t matter. A stovetop also heats water unevenly.
        3. Stop microwaving fucking fish you dirty bastards. I will punt any mf who microwaves fish into the fuckin Gehenna.
        • nBodyProblem@lemmy.world
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          Convection currents don’t stir water in a microwave because the heat source isn’t on the bottom. That’s the difference. You get temperature stratified water where the surface is hotter than the bottom of the cup and they don’t naturally mix.

          Of course, here in America, we have this incredible technology called a spoon. Pull that bad boy out, give a little stir, problem solved.

          • Rustmilian@lemmy.world
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            Convection currents don’t need the heat source to be directly at the bottom to stir the liquid, it just needs cold water to be on-top of hot, because cold is more dense.
            Microwaves don’t really heat top to bottom either, it’s shooting waves through the body of the water and even the cup, directly exciting a bunch of individual H2O atoms in hot spots where the microwaves peak at, (e.g. the actual microwaves not the name of the machine) heating the liquid very unevenly. The wave could very much be heating a fraction of the top, middle, and bottom at different points in 3d space. it just depends on the peak of the micro-waves.

              • Rustmilian@lemmy.world
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                3 months ago

                I’m well aware of temperature stratification. It doesn’t happen in a microwave in the same way.

                Micro waves don’t heat purely the top surface, they penetrate the entire waters body creating super-heated localized hotpots that shift the water around from Convection currents because the hotter more excited water atoms are less dense than the colder less excited water atoms above them spreading temperature out from those hotspots.
                Temperature stratification only comes into play if there’s no nucleation point, in which you get this.
                Also, your link is dead.

                • nBodyProblem@lemmy.world
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                  3 months ago

                  I’m well aware of temperature stratification. It doesn’t happen in a microwave.

                  It empirically does. We can argue about the theory all day but the research says microwaves produce stratified temperature gradients when heating liquids. However, I’d point out that, in atmosphere, when we have localized hot spots the warm air can effectively travel in bubbles without significant mixing for quite some distance. There seems to be a similar phenomena at work when microwaving liquids.

                  See the screenshot below.

                  I pulled this from “Multiphysics analysis for unusual heat convection in microwave heating liquid” published in 2020 in AIP Advances.

                  Relevant excerpts:

                  “ Usually, the fluidity of liquids is considered to make the temperature field uniform, when it is heated, because of the heat convection, but there is something different when microwave heating. The temperature of the top is always the highest in the liquid when heated by microwaves.”

                  “ The experimental results show that when the modified glass cup with 7 cm metal coating is used to heat water in a microwave oven, the temperature difference between the upper and lower parts of the water is reduced from 7.8 °C to 0.5 °C.”

                  “According to the feedback from Midea (microwave appliance makers), when users use the microwave oven to heat liquids such as milk or water, the temperature at the top of the liquid will be significantly higher than the temperature at the bottom.”

      • noisefree@lemmy.world
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        3 months ago

        You gotta clean the microwave regularly like anything else. There are reasons why I would probably use my stove top over my microwave to boil water (though I do use a microwave to make tea when I just want a single serving), but your points about water splashing up everywhere and dripping down off of disgusting interior surfaces of the microwave sound a lot like operator error.

        • Rustmilian@lemmy.world
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          If you’re microwaving water for more than 2-4 minutes you’re doing something very very wrong.
          1m 30s to 2mins is already enough for 1 coffee cup worth of water to reach boiling temp in the majority of microwaves.

          • noisefree@lemmy.world
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            3 months ago

            I’m just imagining @Mr_Blott@lemmy.world microwaving a cup of water for way too long to absolutely volcanic results and then throwing up his hands in disgust before walking away from the swampy microwave without bothering to clean the mess up like a scene out of some infomercial for a device that solves microwave issues that don’t exist lol

      • Ookami38@sh.itjust.works
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        3 months ago

        Yeeeeah, that’s not how microwaved water works. If there IS any temperature differential, the movement of the water quickly evens it out. By the time you’re dropping your tea in, it’s even.

        As far as microwaves being stinky, that’s a you thing, bud. My microwave smells fine.

        • themeatbridge@lemmy.world
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          3 months ago

          Or just like gently stir the water when it comes out of the microwave. You’d really have to overcook the fuck out of the water to create a risk of superheated water explosions. Tea should be slightly below boiling anyway.

        • pretzelz@lemmy.world
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          Which is why it’s important to put the teabag in the water before microwaving it.

          I know you are trying to bait me and I’m not going to fall for it

    • li10@lemmy.ml
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      You’ve missed the way that British people actually boil water though, thus missing the true reason that we’re superior.

  • SuperDuper@lemmy.world
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    Bri’ish people: Conquer half of the world in the name of spices

    Also Bri’ish people: Refuse to season food

        • Mr_Blott@lemmy.world
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          Our curries. Conceived by British people. Whose families may have come come from other countries. You know. British people

            • Fushuan [he/him]@lemm.ee
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              3 months ago

              Hence why they said “our curry” instead of “curry”, to specify which kind of curry they are speaking about since by saying curry in general one might not think about British curry. Just like Australian sushi.

    • MadBob@feddit.nl
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      I’d never dare make a joke like this, not because it’s mean or whatever, but because I wouldn’t want to show off how little I know about the world.

  • nyahlathotep@sh.itjust.works
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    3 months ago

    Americans who drink tea generally use a stovetop kettle. Sometimes they use an electric one. But what does it matter how the water gets hot, if the water’s hot? Microwave radiation doesn’t leave a taste in water or something

    • db2@lemmy.world
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      Boiling it with some kind of kettle can make minerals drop out of solution, but I really doubt it would make a significant taste difference unless the kettle is attached to copper piping leading to a catch basin (aka a still).

    • themeatbridge@lemmy.world
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      I have been drinking a lot of tea because I had a persistent cough. I use the microwave because it’s faster than boiling my kettle.

  • cmbabul@lemmy.world
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    This isn’t true, Americans make tea by boiling a stovetop kettle pouring that into a pitcher with 5 teabags adding 1-3 cups of sugar after about 3 minutes and then filling that pitcher to the top with hot tap water. And then pouring that over ice after about 5 minutes

    • Luke@lemmy.ml
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      You kid, but I really do find this stereotype of Americans fascinating in it’s persistence. Every supermarket I’ve been to in America during the last decade has a tea section that is double the size of the coffee section next to it. These stores wouldn’t be stocking like that if Americans weren’t buying a ton of tea, but yet the idea of America being a tea desert continues.

    • taanegl@lemmy.world
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      3 months ago

      Why of course we do. But we drink Yankee tea, which is a super concentrate of all tea leaves ever created. It’s illegal in 36 countries and if you drink it you either meet god or you have a stroke. One of the two.

    • BilliamBoberts@lemmy.world
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      3 months ago

      I either buy my tea at a convenience store in a can, or i put it in a large jug of water, leave it out in the sun for a few hours and then drink it with ice and a bit of sugar.

  • Vespair@lemm.ee
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    Electric kettles have been available at every American supermarket superstore for literal decades.

    Yes they aren’t ubiquitous here in the way they are in the UK and elsewhere, but they’re absolutely not a rarity at all.

    Sincerely, somebody who has been using an electric kettle for almost two decades.

    edit: wrong word. I meant places like Walmart, not places like Safeway.

    • fidodo@lemmy.world
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      The people that don’t have kettles don’t drink tea. Pretty much everyone I know who drinks plenty of tea have kettles, and everyone knows that they’re an option.

      • Vespair@lemm.ee
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        Well considered it was only 5 days ago that I made this comment, you successfully clocked me as a tea drinker and you might be on to something with your theory.

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      Curious if you have any insight as to why Americans in movies always boil water on the stove top? Australian here and we use electric Kettles. I assumed it was a 120 vs 240V thing.

      • Vespair@lemm.ee
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        Again, ubiquity. Especially since the vast majority of Americans who make coffee at home do so in drip coffee machines, there just isn’t a lot the typical American is needs to heat up hot water for, so to most people an electric kettle is a non-mandatory item. Even most American tea drinkers honestly aren’t daily tea drinkers (myself included), so for many the benefit of having extra counter space beats out the benefit of having convenient hot water, and a stovetop kettle can most easily be put away in the back of a cabinet somewhere.

        • nevetsg@aussie.zone
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          Interesting, I like this take. Where as we boil water multiple times a day. Americans use that bench space for their dripulator.

  • Raiderkev@lemmy.world
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    3 months ago

    Lol, no we don’t. We just don’t drink tea. Unless you’re in the south n it’s more sugar water than tea.

  • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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    Britain, do you really want to compare appliances?

    I could put most of your fridges in my fridge.

    I could put the whole bayuex tapestry in my washing machine.

    I don’t even know if y’all can fit scrooge’s Christmas bird in your ovens.

    I’m kidding around but the one thing y’all definitely have is better kettles that’s for damn sure.

    • Huschke@lemmy.world
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      Are the things you listed supposed to be positives? It’s so weird to me that Americans like everything to be gigantic.

      • rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
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        My parents were like that when I was a kid, always going for the heavier, bigger and uglier option.

        Taught me to value minimalism and compactness the painful way.

      • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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        Yes, I’d like to be able to keep a longer run of groceries on hand. I’d like to be able.to wash curtains or duvets. I’d like to be able to easily cook the main course of a popular holiday.

        I have a 20 minute drive to a grocery that has everything I need, so I want to do it less frequently. I use my duvet every night so it needs to be cleaned weekly.

        Appliances are to do things. I want to do more things more easily.

        Fridges store food. I don’t want my appetite to dictate the size of my fridge, but the freshness of vegetables and such.

        Washing machines wash things. I want to be able to wash all the things I regularly use without any loss of performance.

        You can’t tell me, that all things being equal, you’d prefer a smaller washer. Or that you want to think / guess about the available space in your fridge if you’re at the store and looking at a purchase at the grocery. “Hmm I want this for a meal, but I don’t think I have space for it” is not and ideal statement.

        • Exocrinous@lemm.ee
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          3 months ago

          I have a 20 minute drive to a grocery that has everything I need, so I want to do it less frequently.

          Americans need giant fridges because their city planners suck at their jobs.

          • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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            No, america is fucking big.

            You would not build a rail/bus/hovercar between me and the grocery, even with europlanners.

            Ultimately this does not address my later point: I never worry about if I have space to house a food item I want. When I lived in the UK, in a detached house with a “normal” kitchen, I often thought about the available space at home, while I’m standing in the store. That’s silly.

            Lastly, in many densely populated areas (like Manhattan) you still get full sized fridges, so your euro-density-pubtransit argument again fails.

            Many folks absolutely could walk/bike/train to a grocery, but you can be sure they have full sized fridges 99% of the time.

            • Exocrinous@lemm.ee
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              You shouldn’t need to catch the train to get to the grocery store. There should be one walking distance from your house. American city planners don’t allow grocery stores to be built in residential zones because they’re bad at their jobs.

              • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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                There’s no grocery store by my house because there’s only 10 other houses by my house. Lol you have no clue what you’re talking about.

                America is big and Europe is old.

        • Aux@lemmy.world
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          That’s the problem - I only have to walk 5 minutes for my groceries. There’s really no need to stock up on anything.

          • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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            But then you are dependant on an errand several times per week

            • Aux@lemmy.world
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              Do you just sit at home all the time? I just go to the shop when I’m returning home - pop in for a few minutes and continue on my way. Errands, lol.

              • Guntrigger@feddit.ch
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                I always found the concept of spending a day running errands weird and see many TV shows mention this. I guess it’s a 20 minute drive to everything.

    • ashok36@lemmy.world
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      Making better kettles is easier when your entire electric grid is optimised for it.

      Seriously, 220 volts will just always get you a faster boil than 120. It’s physics.

      • GBU_28@lemm.ee
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        No, it doesn’t.

        Having a small fridge and going to the grocery very often vs having a large fridge and going less frequently tells you nothing about calories consumed.

  • Rin@lemm.ee
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    I have an electric kettle and actually go out of my way to get good tea thank you.

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    I use a kettle at home, but I’ve used a microwave at work. I don’t understand what’s remotely laughable about doing so. Boiling water is boiling water.

    I’ll tell what is laughable is how America restaurants typically serve hot tea. They draw a small metal container of hot water from the spigot on the side of the coffee maker, and bring it to the table with an empty cup and a teabag. By the time the bag goes in the water, the water is far too cold to infuse properly.

    • Caiman86@lemmy.world
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      Our typical US 120V household outlets can’t pull that much power. Most electric kettles here draw about 1.5 kW.

      Could run a 240V circuit (or tap into the oven/range 240V circuit I suppose) and use an imported UK kettle. I’ve heard of people here actually doing this, but I can live with the slower boil times 😄

  • ExfilBravo@lemmy.world
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    I have a machine that keeps hot water on tap. You peasants heat your water up? I pour mine in the cup already boiling hot from the tap. Kettles are so 90s early 2000s.

            • tigeruppercut@lemmy.zip
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              Yeah in the US there’s not a convenient way to turn your boiler down or off, nor would you want to because that’s not really how they were designed. But I don’t think that was the same in all countries-- I remember reading a book from a British guy who moved to the US and couldn’t figure out how to turn his heater off before realizing he wasn’t supposed to.

              Plus now with the newer “tankless” models you don’t have to keep water hot all day, just turn it on when you need it.

              • Mr_Blott@lemmy.world
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                Tankless hot water on demand has been a thing in Europe since the 80s too

                It’s pretty sad how far behind the US has fallen without even realising it

  • TheControlled@lemmy.world
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    I like my electric kettle because it has temperature settings for specific tea leaves/types and it has a large volume. But if I just want to boil one cup, the microwave is a no-brainer.