Pat’s Essential Gadget #3 – Thermometers

If you’re gonna cook, ya gotta have heat. And if you’re gonna cook well (or rare, or medium rare) it’s pretty important to control that heat, both inside and outside of what you’re cooking. That’s why my pick for Essential Gadget this week is thermometers. I say thermometers plural because depending on what you’re making, there’s a thermometer best suited for it.

Say Cheese

I was actually pretty surprised at my collection of thermometers I unearthed rummaging through my kitchen drawers. Several are special use, some are multitaskers. For instance, I have one thermometer for use when making cheese. It’s not like I ran out just to buy a cheese-making thermometer (a candy thermometer would serve the same purpose, and I already have one of those), it actually came as part of a kit from Urban Cheese Craft, a terrific site if you’re interested in exploring cheesemaking. Some soft cheeses like mozzarella and ricotta are easy (if time-consuming) to make, and you can control all your ingredients, including add-ins. Imagine making a fresh ball of mozz with fresh minced basil mixed in. Slice it and alternate it with tomato slices, drizzle balsamic vinegar, and voila, a masterstroke Caprese salad! Check out www.urbancheesecraft.com for recipes and supplies.

My go-to thermometer is my instant-read probe thermometer (that red one in the photo). You can spend just about as much as you want on getting an instant-read, I personally opted for a modestly priced unit that is working just fine (so far). I can’t imagine a more convenient way for checking temps in meat and fish for doneness levels. At least when cooking INSIDE…

The Thrilla with a Grilla

But if you venture out to the grill, which we do a lot here in Texas, then things can get slick and trick really fast, just because they can. We own an early (read “old”) remote thermometer, where we insert the probe into the meat on the grill, and the temperature transmits to yet another monitor that you can tote along with you while you kick up your feet on the porch in the shade. It even has built-in settings for the “safe to eat” temps specified by the USDA, so you can pick “turkey” and it programs the alarm to sound at 165 degrees (F). (BTW, this is a really nice photo of a newer set. I noticed in my first photo that my set could use a bath, to say the least. Hey, we just used it on our smoked turkey, don’t judge me.)

Weber has taken it a step further with their iGrill thermometer-slash-computer-slash-sensor technology. You know the saying “there’s an app for that”? Well guess what? This thermometer probe has Bluetooth connectivity so you can monitor your steak using your iPhone. The app has tons of other features too. Last Christmas we bought a Weber Genesis II grill as our joint gift, and this baby supports the iGrill3 which pretty much does everything you can think of short of washing the car while you grill. Envy worthy? Oh yeah. Come to mama. 

Carol

Wow, that’s a lot of thermometers! I must admit that up until a few months ago the only thermometer that I had was a candy thermometer which would definitely not qualify as an essential gadget. 

The ‘Ole Buckeye on the other hand has dual thermometers he uses for grilling steaks or chicken. It wasn’t until I started making sourdough bread during this shutdown that I determined the need to measure internal temperature. During the initial trial and error of baking bread I pulled out his trusty meat thermometers. 

Alas…they were found to be non functioning!

The research began and as of July 2020, I am now the proud owner of the ThermoPro TP03 Digital Instant Read Meat Thermometer.

Features:

Super-fast: Instant reading thermometer with backlight features 3.9 inches food grade stainless steel probe gets temp readout within 3-5 seconds with high precision sensor

Accurate readout: Cooking thermometer with temp range of -58 ~ 572 degree Fahrenheit (-50 ~ 300 degree Celsius); accurate to ±0.9 degree Fahrenheit; Perfect for indoor outdoor cooking, grilling, BBQ and so on

Easy to use: Kitchen thermometer with foldable probe design folds away easily and locks into base for portability; Magnetic back and hook allows for convenient storage

Smart design: Digital meat thermometer will auto shut off if readout stays on for 10 minutes; Powered by AAA battery; batteries included

Backlight display: Grilling thermometer features backlight LCD display to let you see clearly while cooking in the evening, indoors or outdoors

Although initially I used this thermometer for testing the doneness of my sour dough, I have found it essential in checking the temperature of a myriad of foods and asking the question…How did I live without it? I guess over the years I have been dependent on intuitive cooking rather than a more scientific approach. I will say however that more often than not when I think something is done and I check for temperature, my intuition is correct!

Jan

I too have many thermometers. I have an oven thermometer, a refrigerator thermometer, two candy thermometers (one used for candy, the other for measuring the temperature of oil in deep frying), and a cheese thermometer. All of these get occasional use but I would not be desperate without them.

However, like Carol and Pat, there is one I would not do without….

my Super-Fast Thermapen from Thermoworks. I have had her for years. She shows the scars of my love for her. One end of the case is slightly melted from a near death experience when left too near the burner. A rubber band holds together her cracked case after a hard fall. And yet she works on. She tirelessly measures the temperature of meats cooked inside and out. She faithfully takes the temperature of milk to be used for cheese or yogurt. She fearlessly probes for the heat of baking bread. She folds into a neat little package small enough to fit in a back pocket on the way to the grill and to be stored neatly in the drawer.

All we hard working home cooks bear the scars of cuts and burns yet keep on doing the job…just like my hero, The Thermapen! I salute you all!