Why can't you boil warm water?

[Tenbatsuzen]

I've always been warned by my mother and girlfriend to use ICE COLD water when boiling pasta water.

What's the difference? I figure getting a jump start on boiling the water would be easier.



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[Tazz]

The hot water allegedly has the ability to possibly absorb more lead and other heavy metals from the plumbing system then does the cold water. If the house is new, there shouldn't be a problem. Either way, it's an old wives tale. Hot water boils faster.

Edit: I only say alledgedly because while the warm water WILL dissolve lead at a higher rate then cold, the actual amount is negligable.
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This message was edited by Tazz on 5-22-03 @ 5:51 PM

[HordeKing1]

I agree with TAZZ - Of course warm water will boil. However, older (non pcv) pipes contained lead which is leeched into the water at an increased rate when the water is hot.

Cold water is preferable to use for this reason only. Your pasta will not suffer.

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[reeshy]

I'm not sure if I agree with these hyptheses. If you think about it, cold water is essentially fresher water than water out of a water heater. The water in a heater has been sitting there for some time and might have less air moecules in it than cold water since cold water is "running" in the mains and therefore is more aerated than standing water. A friend of mine used to work in a pizzaria where they made their own dough. They used ice cold tap water because the dough "tasted" better than using warm water that had been standing or warmed over the stove. I don't know-what do I know????

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Thanks Reef

[Tenbatsuzen]

The house was built pre-WWI but has a new hot water heater. The water is boiling now...



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[TooCute]

I doubt the suggestion to boil cold water for pasta has to do with lead from pipes (although it used to). Reeshy is probably correct.

You boil cold water because it has more oxygen dissolved in it than warm water that has been sitting in a tank, and oxygen helps to release the flavor of things such as tea or coffee (or pizza dough, I suppose).

It probably makes less of a difference for things like pasta, because (unless it's fresh, which is really the way to go) pasta gets boiled in the water for so long. But then, I don't know how long it takes to significantly deoxygenate water.

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[reeshy]

Reeshy is probably correct.


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Thanks Reef

[Def Dave in SC]

Congratulations, Reeshy!
Keep this up and you will soon have your own "Ask Reeshy" forum.

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[Thebazile78]

What's the difference?

Have you seen what the hot water looks like when it comes out of the kitchen tap at my place?

Cloudy. . .and it smells heavily chlorinated. . .

As for me, I'll take my chances with the cold water. Yes, it takes longer to boil, but at least I don't have to wait for it to settle before I use it.





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[TooCute]

Have you seen what the hot water looks like when it comes out of the kitchen tap at my place?

Cloudy. . .and it smells heavily chlorinated. . .

It looks cloudy because when it gets heated it (a ha!) doesn't hold on to its dissolved oxygen (why it's bad for making tea and pasta, right?) and so the oxygen that is released forms a gazillion little airbubbles. It's also just as chlorinated as your cold tap water, only when it's heated the chlorine (like the oxygen) is also released so you can smell it more.

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[Thebazile78]

I'm a tea-drinker, so maybe that makes me extra picky.

Thanks for the analysis, Aya. :)



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[sr71blackbird]

I heard that if you put a cup of hot water and a cup of cold water in the freezer, that the hot water will be frozen faster than the cold. Is this true?

[kc7586]

i dont have the time or the patience to wait for cold water to boil, i use the hottest water i can get and its boiling a lot hell of a lot sooner.

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[Def Dave in SC]

I heard that if you put a cup of hot water and a cup of cold water in the freezer, that the hot water will be frozen faster than the cold. Is this true?


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[Heavy]

i dont have the time or the patience to wait for cold water to boil, i use the hottest water i can get and its boiling a lot hell of a lot sooner.



I must disagree. From what I learned in this thread I decided cold water from now on. (i made soup tonight) I always used to get the hottest water possible for speed purposses but tonight i didnt notice the cold water taking anylonger to boil.

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[HordeKing1]

If you use hot water frequently, as in showers, dishwashers, washing machines, baths, doing dishes etc, etc, the amount of time the hot water spends in the boiler is minimal. It's also constantly topped off by cold water, as soon as some hot water is used.

B/c of this, in an active household (i.e. with kids), the oxygen content of hot and cold water is probably not measurable, let alone discernable to the average user.

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