When you take the time to make a home-cooked meal, you want it done right.
You use exact measurements, follow the recipe to a tee, and thoroughly prepare a tasty dinner that is 100% safe for your family to eat. Cooking for your loved-ones means a great deal to you, and using a series of tests that are inaccurate will not work for you.
Instead, you prepare different types of meat to the correct temperatures. There is no way you would cook chicken, roast beef, or steak, and leave the readiness of the meat to guesswork.
It is why home cooks everywhere need to use a high quality meat thermometer to ensure their food’s cooking-time is complete and always ready before serving it.
2 Types of Quality Meat Thermometers
It is vital that the cook of the house use a meat thermometer, but not just any kind of instrument.
You need an accurate one.
There are plenty of different types of meat thermometers, including:
- Analog thermometers
- Digital meat thermometers
- Thermocouples
- Dial thermometers
- Probe thermometers
- Wireless meat thermometers
- Bluetooth thermometers
- Instant-read thermometers
If you want to know the moment your meat reaches a safe internal temperature, it requires precision.
Thus, only using the best meat thermometers will do.
Review all kinds of thermometers to ensure its quality and to find a personal preference. This indispensable kitchen tool needs your attention to discover the best choice.
Locate the best food thermometer that will work best with your cooking before sticking it into your cuts of meat.
Before you can select the right one to add to your culinary repertoire, you must first learn about the two types of meat thermometers available.
Probe Thermometers
A probe thermometer needs to remain in the meat the entire time it is cooking in the oven, on the stove, or grill. It is how you will get an accurate temperature reading.
Although they typically cost more, probe thermometers’ have some of the best models. Features can include alerting you when the meat is at the optimal temperature. Who doesn’t love that!
Digital Instant-Read Thermometers
An instant-read thermometer is not designed to remain in the meat, but it is hard to beat its response time. It will require you to use it several times throughout the cooking process.
Digital instant-read thermometers often have lower prices and less than 10-seconds reading, which makes up for the continuous hours of use.
3 Essential Steps to Handling a Meat Thermometer
The main reason you should invest in a meat thermometer is food safety. Yet, if you do not know how to handle one, it will change whether your food is in or out of the cooking “danger zone.”
Stores carry a wide variety of food thermometers but only pick the best one, which will suit your cooking needs.
1. Decide which thermometer you want
Before getting a meat thermometer, decide on which one you know you will use.
- Do you prefer a probe or digital instant-read thermometer?
- Do you know how to handle an instant-read meat thermometer to gain an accurate reading?
- Do you want it to have key features, extra features, a smart app, wireless range, or sleep mode?
- Do you want an extra-long probe or one with a thin tip?
- Do you want to keep the thermometer in the meat or check it several times during the cooking process?
Look closer at the various types of thermometers to see what each can offer you.
2. Examine the temperature features of the thermometer
- Audible Alarm: A sound will alert you that the meat has reached the preset temperature.
- Auto Shutoff: The thermometer will automatically turn off when it is not in use.
- Programmable Temperature: Insert the target temperature and monitor the meat.
- Temperature Hold: The reading will show for 5 minutes or longer.
- Timer: You can set how long you want to cook the meat.
3. Learn how to use a meat thermometer properly
Once you decide on a top pick probe or digital instant-read meat thermometer, the next step is to learn how to use it.
How well your food is cooked is a serious matter. Take the necessary steps to ensure the thermometer continues to provide accurate readings.
Step One: Test it out
You can use either an ice water test or boiling water test to ensure your food thermometer is accurate.
Step Two: Calibrate it
Read the instructions that come with the thermometer to learn how to adjust it, as needed. You want to ensure you get an accurate reading.
Step Three: Placement
Where you place the thermometer in your meat is very critical to get a correct reading.
Using a food thermometer is only half the equation. Always check the side of food products to read the cooking directions.
Every meat product requires a different placement of the thermometers and safe internal temperatures.
Example: Where you place the instrument in fish is not where you put it in chicken. The same goes for the inside temperature and how to determine when food is “done” and safe to eat.
Yet, you still need to place the thermometer in the thickest part of the meat. Make sure it does not touch any bone, fat, or gristle for an accurate reading.
Step Four: Be patient
Avoid rushing the process and wait for the recommended time before checking the food, as instructed by your type of thermometer.
Step 5: Take good care of it
Ensure the cleanliness of your food thermometer is a top priority. Use new, hot, and soapy water after each use to prevent cross-contamination and the spread of harmful bacteria.
7 of the Best Meat Thermometers of 2024
No matter where you cook your meat, whether it is at home, at a friend’s house, inside, or outdoors, it needs not only to taste great but should make dinner guests feel good too.
Top Pick Cooking Thermometers
Below is a list of the best meat thermometers of 2024 to help you with your search.
Best Overall Meat Thermometer:
Thermapen Mk4
The Thermapen Mk4 is a foldaway thermocouple probe with a patented auto-rotating display. It is very user-friendly. Whether you are right-or-left-handed, you can easily use this quality thermometer.
Buy Thermapen MK4Best Overall Meat Thermometer: Thermapen Mk4
Best Digital Instant-Read Meat Thermometer: Polder Digital In-Oven Timer
Best Dial Meat Thermometer: OXO Good Grips Chef’s Precision Analog Leave-In Meat Thermometer
Best Meat Thermometer for Safety: Polder Safe & Serve Red Analog Food Thermometer
Best Smart Thermometer: Maverick BT-600 iChef Bluetooth Digital Thermometer
Best Leave-In Digital Meat Thermometer: OXO Good Grips Chef’s Precision Digital Leave-In Thermometer
Best BBQ Meat Thermometer: Weber 7203 iGrill 2 Wireless Bluetooth Grill Thermometer
Best Overall Meat Thermometer:
Thermapen Mk4
- Type: Thermocouple Meat Thermometer.
- Reading time: 2-3 second readings.
- Battery: 3,000-hour battery life (AAA Battery).
- Display temps: °C or °F.
The Thermapen Mk4 is a foldaway thermocouple probe with a patented auto-rotating display. It is very user-friendly. Whether you are right-or-left-handed, you can easily use this quality thermometer.
It offers an intelligent backlight and a motion-sensing sleep and wake mode.
Best Digital Instant-Read Meat Thermometer:
Polder Digital In-Oven Timer
- Type: Digital Instant-Read Meat Thermometer.
- Reading time: 24-hour countdown timer.
- Battery: 1 AAA batteries required.
- Display temps: °C or °F.
The Polder Digital In-Oven Timer is a fully programmable, reliable meat thermometer that monitors the temperature of the food while it is cooking.
You can set the temperature by using its easy-to-read split-screen digital display. Polder also has a memory function, which automatically recalls the last set temperature.
Best Dial Meat Thermometer:
OXO Good Grips Chef’s Precision Analog Leave-In Meat Thermometer
- Type: Analog/Dial Instant-Read Leave-In Thermometer.
- Reading time: Dial.
- Battery: N/A.
- Display temps: °C or °F.
The OXO Good Grips Analog Thermometer quickly and accurately displays the internal temperature of the meat.
Get professional-grade results with its built-in temperature guidelines. It is simple to use, and The thermometer’s clear analog face provides easy access to read the numbers.
Best Meat Thermometer for Safety:
Polder Safe & Serve Red Analog Food Thermometer
- Type: Analog Food Thermometer.
- Reading time: 8-seconds.
- Battery: 2 AAA batteries required.
- Display temps: °C or °F.
The Polder Safe & Serve Red Analog Food Thermometer offers cooks the ability to read meat temperatures in a flash.
It has an extra thin probe tip and a cook to taste function. It also includes other useful features, like torchlight and back-lit display.
Best Smart Thermometer:
Maverick BT-600 iChef Bluetooth Digital Thermometer
- Type: In-oven Bluetooth digital thermometer.
- Reading time: Monitor your food from up to 300′ away.
- Battery: 2 AAA batteries required.
- Display temps: °C or °F.
Get reliable results from your unit and through the use of advanced technology. Your results will also appear on your connected smart device.
Few meat thermometers will connect to your iOS or Android device via Bluetooth capabilities.
Nor will they have a free Insta-Sync Technology app that helps you remotely monitor the precise temperature of your food from up to 300 feet away.
Best Leave-In Digital Meat Thermometer:
OXO Good Grips Chef’s Precision Digital Leave-In Thermometer
- Type: Leave-in digital thermometer.
- Reading time: Angle display with 24-hour timer functions.
- Battery: 2 AAA batteries required.
- Display temps: °C or °F.
With the use of the OXO Good Grips Chef’s Precision Digital Leave-In Thermometer you can cook a delicious and safe meal every time.
This durable stainless steel probe can withstand up to 700 degrees Fahrenheit, and the 10-degree warning alert prevents your meat from overcooking.
Best BBQ Meat Thermometer:
Weber 7203 iGrill 2 Wireless Bluetooth Grill Thermometer
- Type: Wireless 2 probe thermometer.
- Reading time: Preset temperature monitoring.
- Battery: 200-battery life. 2 AA batteries required.
- Display temps: °C or °F.
The Weber 7203 iGrill2 is the best wireless meat thermometer for smart grilling on the BBQ. It is an excellent choice that makes it easy to achieve grilling perfection.
The iGrill2 includes a free wireless iOS and Android app that has a Bluetooth Smart connection.
With the use of this helpful thermometer, you can know precisely when to take your meat off the grill.
Conclusion
You do not have to be a chef or go to culinary school to develop a passion for cooking.
If preparing meals is something you love to do, then it is highly probable you will work hard to make every dish taste better than the last.
Whether you use a deep fryer, stovetop, oven, or grill, you will not settle for anything less than a perfectly cooked meal.
And you do not have to.
Overcooked foods containing harmful bacteria have no place in your kitchen. Your goal is to leave guests feeling full and satisfied, not hungry or sick.
Avoid serving undercooked or overcooked meals. To make this happen, there is one essential tool every meal prepper requires: a meat thermometer.
Keep friends and family healthy by ensuring your food is cooked to perfection. Thermometers help you know when your meats are safe to eat.
There is no doubt, you want people talking about your well-cooked meat, but make sure what they are saying is all-good.
By using one of the best meat thermometers, you no longer need to put your energy towards worrying about when the meal is ready. Instead, take that time to come up with the perfect side dish or a new recipe that your family is sure to love.
