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Cooking thermometers measure the temperature of food for safety, taste, and recipe success. They are commonly used on meat and poultry, as well as for making jams, jellies, and candies. There are many types of thermometers, including dial, instant-read, fork, thermocouple, pop-up, wireless, and disposable.
A cooking thermometer is a kitchen tool that measures the temperature of different types of food. The need to know the temperature of food is usually based on safety concerns, palate preferences, or guidelines that determine the temperature levels that must be achieved for the recipe to be successful or for the food to be cooked properly. In some cases, they are used during the cooking process. Other recipes call for their use only to determine when a food has reached the desired final temperature and is ready for consumption.
Most cooking thermometers are used on meat and poultry. This frequency of use on these food items is generally attributed to the fact that it is usually not possible to tell whether these items are properly cooked by simple visual perception. Since repeated slicing or poking of the meat of these items to determine doneness can compromise the visual presentation, thermometers are commonly used to simplify the process.
Other food products that require accurate and often constant temperature monitoring include jams, jellies and candies. In order for homemade jams and jellies to set properly and not look like syrup, they need to be kept at a stable temperature level for a specific amount of time while cooking. When making candies at home, the packages need to reach a certain temperature level based on the desired final texture. A candy cooking thermometer measures boiling liquid in ball stages indicated on the display as soft, medium, and hard.
There are many types and styles of cooking thermometers. Most are moderately priced although some instant-read models may seem expensive for occasional use by non-professional cooks. While these thermometers can be used on vegetable or pasta dishes, they are most commonly used for meat, fish and poultry.
A popular and reliable cooking thermometer is a simple dial type with a single probe that is inserted into the thickest part of the meat. It is commonly placed in the pot at the beginning of the cooking process and monitored until the desired temperature is reached. The updated version of this cooking thermometer gives an instant reading of the temperature and is inserted towards the end of the cooking procedure. A fork thermometer is identical to the latter version except that it has two probes instead of one. The more expensive version of the thermocouple gives an instant reading and has a probe.
Pop-up thermometers were originally introduced in commercially marketed turkeys. They are designed to pop out of the meat when the poultry is done. They can also be purchased for home use. Wireless thermometers are popular for cooking dishes where the oven door should not be opened during the cooking process. The probe is placed in the pan as it enters the oven and a wireless external control sounds an alarm when the item has reached the desired temperature. Disposable cooking thermometers provide instant readings and should be discarded after one use.
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