this post was submitted on 10 Dec 2024
363 points (98.1% liked)

xkcd

8968 readers
186 users here now

A community for a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

No, of course we don't microwave the mug WITH the teabag in it. We microwave the teabag separately.

https://explainxkcd.com/3022/

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] [email protected] 63 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 33 points 1 week ago

You disgust me

[–] [email protected] 54 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Where's throwing it into the harbor fall on this chart?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 days ago

A war was started because of that

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago

The USA was apparently built on communism.

[–] [email protected] 30 points 1 week ago (28 children)

Ok, but, why is microwaved water any different the water warmed in a kettle?

This seems like a pointless thing to get worked up over.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 week ago

Went to see Randall doing his book promo and being interviewed by Matt Parker (in the UK) recently and this was his exact position on it

The audience were not on his side 😆

load more comments (27 replies)
[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 week ago (5 children)

How about someone who leaves the tea bag in the mug, sometimes for multiple days? Sips the tea with multiple bags still in it? It creeps me out and I am not even a big tea drinker.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 week ago

What the fuck

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 week ago

Made me think of that eternal stew, but you instead add in more and more tea bags

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I've done that a few times. Mostly when the previous bag was used the night before, and I was super sleepy in the morning, so didn't even bother ditching it, saving 1.3 seconds and thinking it would make my new tea stronger.

...yeah, I don't do that anymore. But this is why I used to.

UPDATE: I just made my tea just the regular way this morning. While stirring, I realised I had left the previous night's red berry tea bag in it. I didn't want to waste an otherwise perfectly fine bag of Earl Grey, so I did it again. Not intentionally, though. Also, note to self: red berry Earl Grey is not great.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 week ago (7 children)

I’m an American who drinks tea. I’d love to hear from our distant countrymen on how accurate this is.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 week ago (3 children)

100% spot on. Microwaved tea is comparable I would say to microwaving a steak

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 week ago

The state of education is extremely depressing holy shit.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago (1 children)

It’s foul. Cup of Tannin, more like.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 week ago (4 children)

... wait, there are some americans who put the tea BAG in the microwave with the water?!?

I've MADE tea using a microwave before and it was ALWAYS "heating the water in the microwave, then adding the teabag to the hot water", it never even crossed my MIND to have the tea bag inside the microwave, and frankly that sounds AWFUL.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Maybe, who knows? Reheating tea though is absolutely foul. Worse than reheating coffee, somehow, and reheating coffee is pretty bad.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Why would you reheat tea in the first place? Just pour more boiling water in it.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago

Preaching meet choir.

load more comments (3 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 week ago (3 children)

For a start, you don't make tea in a kettle, you boil the water in that, then either pour into a mug or a teapot

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

I refuse to believe that Randall doesn't know how tea is actually made, so it has to be a meta-joke / troll.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago

That’s how I do it. Electric kettle. Glass.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (5 replies)
[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 week ago (1 children)

The patriot in me smiles every time I microwave the water. Yankee Doodle, motherfuckers.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 week ago (2 children)

is it even on the chart when my water cooler at home has a hot spigot that dispenses water at just the right temperature for tea brewing? it's basically like having a kettle that's always ready...

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Patrick Stewart once said American tea was one thing he would never get used to. "For a proper cup of tea the water must be boiling when it hits the leaves." He really didn't like being brought a carafe of somewhat hot water with a teabag next to it. Even as an American I can relate.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago (4 children)

My husband is Northern German, close enough to England that he was horrified at the thought of making tea in the microwave. And he doesn't even really drink tea when he's not sick.

load more comments (4 replies)
[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Yeah the kettle is just for boiling the water, nobody makes tea in it, that would wreck it. Yes, I'm English.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

Kettle boils the water, the TEAPOT steeps and serves the tea. Somehow people end up thinking they're the same thing.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago

Loose leaf or bust! Keep the tea bagging to online shooters

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

Not perfectly relevant, but I've always enjoyed Professor Elemental's take on tea.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago (6 children)

Do Americans make tea in a kettle? Teabag inside the kettle?

load more comments (6 replies)
[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)
[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago

Needs to map sweet tea that the south enjoys.

load more comments
view more: next ›