Making fake tetsubin water for cheap - just add iron egg!

[powersnacks]

powersnacks Apart from the rust, if you enjoy the added value of iron to your water, I would on the other hand want to avoid the flavour contamination of a plastic water kettle

Could it be that the rust is from the egg and attaches itself to the stainless? I'd also be concerned if the boiling egg would damage the heating elements when "bubbling" around in there.

Haha, I am concerned about the plastic flavor as well. But after comparing it to my stainless steel kettle, the egg-powered water is definitely still tastier!

So far, no damage to the heating element. This kettle is maybe the same price as the egg so I'm not too concerned if things go south.

[Balthazar]

Let me help you out here, I’d say a Tetsubin is probably one of the best investment you can make for your tea experience... plenty of returns for the money! I’d compare it to a quality power tool

Thanks (I guess )

Doesn't help that I generally dig cast iron and "buy it for life" items. Hmmm..

@pedant: Very useful info, thanks.

Since we're on the subject of iron and tea brewing. I am curious if anyone knows whether or not a noticeable amount of the iron in the "iron rich" water from a tetsubin (or iron egg containing kettle) will actually be absorbed by the body after having brewed tea. I've been reading a bit about how tea (and to a lesser extent coffee) can inhibit iron absorption. So I'd be surprised if the iron from the tetsubin was actually absorbed by the body if the water had been steeping tea.

There must be studies on this from Japan, no? Not that it takes anything away from the "taste enhancing" qualities of the tetsubin.

[wave_code]

interesting idea!

I had thought about this a while back when I had seen those iron fish around, but yeah I didn't know if I wanted a big piece of iron knocking around in my kettle while it was boiling. but maybe an iron egg in an inexpensive steel gooseneck kettle with an electric burner would make for a pretty good budget/lazy persons set up. hmm...

As for scrap iron as others said for safety reasons I really would not do that since you can't know the history of any random piece of metal. I think the problem with a chunk of cookware too is that most cast iron cookware is seasoned and even sold seasoned or partially seasoned, so you aren't getting any direct contact with the iron, you are just having the seasoning/coating (which is full of fats, oils, strong flavors...) instead slowly cooking off into your water. That or any piece of cookware made of cast iron that is damaged enough to be broken in to pieces is probably so rusted and/or had to undergo some sort of major damage that you probably don't want that in your water either.

[powersnacks]

Since we're on the subject of iron and tea brewing. I am curious if anyone knows whether or not a noticeable amount of the iron in the "iron rich" water from a tetsubin (or iron egg containing kettle) will actually be absorbed by the body after having brewed tea. I've been reading a bit about how tea (and to a lesser extent coffee) can inhibit iron absorption. So I'd be surprised if the iron from the tetsubin was actually absorbed by the body if the water had been steeping tea.

There must be studies on this from Japan, no? Not that it takes anything away from the "taste enhancing" qualities of the tetsubin.

I have been waiting to get blood taken for my physical. I should be able to hopefully confirm that my iron levels have stayed in normal ranges! I will post here when I get that measurement.

[Balthazar]

Well I certainly don't think they would have dropped. I was thinking more about whether or not making tea with a tetsubin or iron egg steeped water would be able to increase iron levels (which is sometimes part of the sales pitch, although not as central as the taste effect), or have no noticable effect on it at all.

[debunix]

I was thinking that it might make a fine addition to my Brita-like water filtering pitcher: if it improves the flavor of tea, should be nice. But....if it coats the inside of the pitcher with a bit of rust, who cares about the pitcher....but sounds like that would risk of flakes of rust ending up in the kettle & damaging it. Hmmm.

[StoneLadle]

Since we're on the subject of iron and tea brewing. I am curious if anyone knows whether or not a noticeable amount of the iron in the "iron rich" water from a tetsubin (or iron egg containing kettle) will actually be absorbed by the body after having brewed tea. I've been reading a bit about how tea (and to a lesser extent coffee) can inhibit iron absorption. So I'd be surprised if the iron from the tetsubin was actually absorbed by the body if the water had been steeping tea.

There must be studies on this from Japan, no? Not that it takes anything away from the "taste enhancing" qualities of the tetsubin.

I have been waiting to get blood taken for my physical. I should be able to hopefully confirm that my iron levels have stayed in normal ranges! I will post here when I get that measurement.

Empiricism at its best!

[wave_code]

I was thinking that it might make a fine addition to my Brita-like water filtering pitcher: if it improves the flavor of tea, should be nice. But....if it coats the inside of the pitcher with a bit of rust, who cares about the pitcher....but sounds like that would risk of flakes of rust ending up in the kettle & damaging it. Hmmm.

Might still be worth trying, but I think with these the heat and ideally also some acid is needed to actually have the iron release into the water. If its just put in water and not boiled I don't know for sure but I don't think it will release any iron or at least not a significant amount. That being said though, I don't really know- is it the additional iron that is actually improving people's tea water, or is it other effects such as maybe the iron actually helps with absorption or neutralization of something else in the water and just having it make contact with the water is enough?

[Lisanerd23]

Is it rust on the walls of your kettle after that egg? How long one egg will work? Can it corrode?