Why does steam rise from the cooking pot when I turn off the heat after the water starts boiling?

Water evaporates from the surface and the higher the

temperature, the faster it evaporates. The higher the rate

of evaporation, the more likely it is that individual

evaporated molecules will coalesce with others to form

droplets of water large enough to be seen. That is what

steam is and what clouds are. But steam can be observed even

at low temperatures under the right conditions, for example

the morning mist on the surface of a lake or fog. The water

in the cooking pot, if you observe it carefully, will begin

to steam before it starts boiling. So it should be no

surprise to find that it still steams after you turn off the

heat.