It's not a good chef's knife although those are important too. It's not a rolling pin, salad spinner, pasta maker, non-stick sauté pan, Dutch oven, enabled cookware or mushroom brush. It's not the 8-burner gourmet range, warming drawer or double convection oven (none of which this author would be without).
What is the most important kitchen utensil that well over half of you don't have? Of those that do, most don't know how to calibrate it and how vital it can be to you, your friends' and family's health.
The MOST important kitchen utensil one should have ready in their arsenal of culinary drawer-bound noise making contraptions -- a good, well calibrated instant read thermometer!
In a forthcoming post, I'll detail the do's and don'ts about food borne bacteria -- the things to know about internal temperatures and kitchen-based "germ warfare" and effective mitigation of harmful bacteria with this most under rated, underutilized and underappreciated of kitchen gadgets.
For now is the time to detail what makes a good one, how to treat it, use it and calibrate it for optimal performance and a long life of service.
- Feature / Function
- Accuracy - What good is an instant read thermometer that doesn't provide an accurate measurement? Your thermometer should provide accurate measurements between 32° and 212° F. Many lower end digital thermometers lack any means of recalibrating. If they lose accuracy, you'll have no choice but to replace it.
- Response Time - The faster your thermometer provides an accurate reading the better. A good instant read thermometer should provide an accurate reading in 10-20 seconds -- a satisfactory instant read thermometer will provide an accurate reading in 20-30 seconds. Any response time exceeding 30 seconds is poor; don't waste your money.
- Readability - Digital thermometers are much easier to read than Non-Digital / Dial thermometers.
- Verifying Accuracy
- Ice bath method (typically viewed as more accurate):
- Fill a tall drinking glass with crushed or chipped ice
- Slowly add cold tap water
- Again add additional crushed or chipped ice
- Insert instant read thermometer into ice/water slurry at least up to the dimple on the stem of the thermometer.
- When the needle / digital display stops moving, verify temperature. Any reading other than 32° F warrants a recalibration
- Boiling water method (viewed as less accurate due to differences in boiling point at altitude):
- Bring a sauce pan filled with at least 2" of water to a rolling boil
- Insert instant read thermometer into boiling water at least up to the dimple on the stem of the thermometer being very careful not to burn yourself
- When the needle / digital display stops moving, verify temperature. Any reading other than 212° F warrants a recalibration
- Recalibration (Non-digital type only)
- Using a small wrench (often included with the thermometer) or pliers, loosen the nut directly behind the dial.
- Return the probe to ice bath / boiling water per earlier instructions. Rotate dial face until the proper temperature is registered beneath the needle.
- Remove thermometer from ice bath / boiling water and tighten nut.
- Return the probe to the ice bath / boiling water per earlier instructions to verify accuracy.
- Use Tips
- Insert probe into thickest part of food item. Take reading when needle / digital LED stops moving.
- If possible, insert probe into item up to the dimple in the stem for most accurate reading
- When checking internal temperature of bone-in meat products, avoid inserting the probe to the point where it touches the bone. Doing so will result in an inaccurate reading.
- When checking internal temperatures of poultry, one should take reading on dark meat portions (thighs or legs) vs. white meat portions. Dark meat typically cooks slower.
- Avoid cross contamination! Always sanitize probe after taking a reading of any item. This can be easily done with sanitizing wipes.
