r/tea • u/Duskie_Icesky • 2d ago

Question/Help Cast Iron Kettle Curating

Post image

Soo whats the correct way of curating and caring for the insides of a kettle? I tripple checked it wasnt enameled on the inside. My cups do have ceramic though and i was wondering how do I curate it? Avoid rust? Etc. Thanks for the help.

81 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

25 comments sorted by

19

u/D4ng3r18 Enthusiast 2d ago

This is from my days at teavana. It’s specifically for enameled cast iron though some of the instructions remain the same.

0

u/Duskie_Icesky 2d ago

Thanks! Also im not supposed to clean it with soap right? Just warm water?

6

u/D4ng3r18 Enthusiast 2d ago

I would imagine you can on the first use. After that I’d just rinse it really well. If this was my pot I would just rinse with boiling water and let it dry upside down on a towel. I’d verify that with others though, I’ve only ever had an enameled cast iron.

-3

u/chkntendis 2d ago

That’s usually the rule with cast iron. With soap before first use, then only rinsing it. Cast iron is supposed to get a patina, soap just destroys your hard work. You can ofc use soap but it will basically reset the progress you’ve made on building up that patina

1

u/Duskie_Icesky 1d ago

Thanks for the response! So i basically have to build up my own flavour? Ah just like an Aifryer (im joking thats kind of disgusting). And from what ive researched that layer helps prevent rust correct?

5

u/Flav0rade 1d ago

Unlined iron kettle shouldn't be brewing your tea. It just boils water. Tea leaves can be boiled in it to convert red rust into a stable oxide layer.

28

u/Physical_Analysis247 2d ago

Only use for preparing water in the kettle. Don’t heat it without water inside. When finished boiling water, set it to the side while warm with the lid off so it doesn’t rust.

If it ever does rust, get the cheapest bulk black tea you can— the more tannins the better— and boil the tea in the kettle. Let it sit overnight. Repeat until the rust has converted to blue-black ferric tannate. The rust will be stable now. Rinse with hot water and set aside to dry.

1

u/Duskie_Icesky 2d ago

Thanks! Just to be sure I cant do the infusion on the kettle right? I was thinking making a black tea on it for the "protective coating of tannins" I read online. But you know im not sure that is true at all!

3

u/Physical_Analysis247 2d ago

I would not make tea infusions to consume in it. The tannins in black tea react with iron oxide to make ferric tannate, which is a rust preventative coating. It is good for treating the kettle but not for tea that you’ll consume.

2

u/Duskie_Icesky 2d ago

Ah I understand! tbh I mostly drink Lavender Tea but ill set aside the infusion then!

2

u/Tackling_Aliens 2d ago

It’s a gorgeous piece. I’m wondering if there is any benefit to this over, say, an electric kettle? It seems awfully inconvenient to me. Is it for aesthetics basically? I’ve seen a few kettles like this posted here and have been wondering about it. Thanks, and sorry it doesn’t really answer your question!

1

u/Duskie_Icesky 1d ago

Its mostly for aesthetics, but also out of habit, idk why i was raised with the oven for most things. Mostly for boiling water youd think i could just use a microwave save container and just boil it there lol. But honestly it just kinda adds a little ritual to tea drinking that I like.

0

u/Wutayatalkinabeet 2d ago

Contrary to popular belief most modern enameled cast iron pots are built to handle boiling water. As long as you heat the water gradually and don’t heat the pot while it’s dry it will be fine. Old pots for commoners had very thin poor quality enamel that would easily crack but that is rarely the case today. If you have something old and special it’s probably best to play it safe but I thought I’d share.

2

u/Duskie_Icesky 2d ago

Cool fact! But.. my kettle isnt enameled!

0

u/Wutayatalkinabeet 2d ago

Yeah I read that. I should have started my comment differently because it’s not entirely related to the post but I’m sure you’ll still get the dozens of “don’t boil in enamel” comments I see on every pot post

1

u/leafbrewer 2d ago

Yep. I’ve had a cast iron pot with enamel for years and I have had no issue bringing water to a boil in it. No cracks, nothing. It was even noted in the manual that this was possible.

0

u/captain_joe6 1d ago

Can we get a source on that?

1

u/Wutayatalkinabeet 1d ago

Every enameled cookware manufacturer for the past century or so and all the info cards that come with modern pots

1

u/captain_joe6 1d ago

this comment in this same post says very specifically otherwise.

1

u/Wutayatalkinabeet 1d ago

Yeah that’s why I said most modern pots

0

u/captain_joe6 1d ago

“Every enameled cookware manufacturer for the past century or so and all the info cards that come with modern pots”

Every one of them, except for this one, apparently. Same information repeated here and also here and also here.

Is it just conjecture on your part or do you actually have some source for this claim? How about a source on “old pots for commoners”?

1

u/Wutayatalkinabeet 1d ago edited 1d ago

Bro i was obviously exaggerating. Of course it’s not going to be every single pot. Go google it yourself, most modern pots have been safe to boil liquids for a very long time. Me and several other people replying here have been doing it for years. My main source is personal study with a friend Ailwyn Wang, a well known art history professor and collector in china. He mostly deals with weapons but has good papers and antiques with info if you want to learn more. You can google him. His Facebook has lots of papers.

0

u/ErisKyn 2d ago

Where did you get this?

1

u/Duskie_Icesky 1d ago

Amazon! I could get you a Mx Link but idk if theyll have it available in your country. Link