I Can’t Believe I Ever Lived Without This Cozy Kitchen Gem (It Saves Me 5 Minutes Every Morning!)

I’m a certified tea specialist, and while I know others with a near-obsessive desire for tea love the tea-making ritual, I have to be honest with you: I absolutely hate waiting for my teakettle to boil water. So much so that I often head to the (gasp!) microwave to nuke the water instead of waiting for the friendly scream to let me know it’s sufficiently hot.

Generally, my impatience is a timing issue. When I want tea, I want it now — not five minutes from now. I have a million other things going on, and waiting for water to boil is not something I want to add to that to-do list. I can’t do anything else while I wait, either, because if I get going on another project, the kettle will pull me out of my zone.

But now, thanks to my husband, my hot water problem is a thing of the past. On my birthday this past August, he blessed me with a Zojirushi Micom water boiler and warmer. It’s an incredibly highly rated countertop hot water dispenser — he actually found it by searching for items that people have had for years and will never give up. Even Amazon reviews say owners have had the dispenser for years and routinely give them as gifts.

Here’s what makes it so great. It’s about the size of an InstantPot and sits on the countertop so it’s always easily accessible. You fill it up once and it boils the water, then keeps it at that temperature for the foreseeable future. It’s got four temperature settings: 160°F, 175°F, 195°F, and 208°F, so you can decide how warm you need your water to stay.

It also has a timer, so I can set it to turn off overnight, and the water will still be hot and waiting for me in the morning. The thing has a huge capacity — the basin holds 4 liters of water, and there’s a handy level gauge on the front that shows when you need to add more water. 

I also love that because of the temperature setting, you don’t need a thermometer to know when your water is ready for certain drinks. At 208 degrees, you’ve got water perfect for instant coffee, standard teas, and recipes that need boiling water. The 175-degree setting is ideal for matcha and other green teas, and you can use the 160-degree setting for preparing baby formula.

I find that I have to refill the basin every couple days since I use it so often (at least three times a day), or every other day if I’m boiling water for ramen, instant soup, or anything else that needs hot water. But thanks to the gauge, there’s never been a moment when I’ve not had hot water ready to go. The dispenser has made my days so much more efficient. A watched pot (or kettle) never boils, and with this, I don’t need to watch it at all. I can simply set it and forget it, pour my tea, and get a blissful few minutes back. 

I did notice about a week ago that some scaling had built up in the dispenser. That’s not unusual, and as long as you clean it up, it won’t impact your access to fresh hot water. Zojirushi sells descaling citric acid cleaning packs for a couple bucks that you can dump in, and the dispenser has a self-cleaning cycle to run when you do that. Easy-peasy. 

If you’re like me and a steady stream of tea is essential to making it through the frosty days of winter, do yourself a favor and add this water warmer to your wish list. You’ll save yourself so much time and stay cozier in the process. 

Buy: Zojirushi CD-WHC40XH Micom Water Boiler and Warmer, $175