Different Types of Kitchen Thermometers
No matter the type of foodservice operation you run, thermometers are necessary to provide customers with quality and security. Any time food is chilled or cooked, thermometers ensure it reaches safe temperatures to kill bacteria or prevent its growth. Thermometers also verify your food is stored at safe temperatures, helping you maintain product quality when dealing with finicky items. There are several types of food thermometers available – what follows is information on each type so you can choose the best ones for your kitchen.
Meat & Probe Thermometers
When cooking meat, it's essential to use a thermometer to check the internal temperature. Failing to do so can result in undercooked product that's unappetizing, but more importantly, dangerous to serve. While many chefs claim the ability to judge meat's doneness by color or firmness, those methods aren't reliable and don't comply with HACCP proposals. Measuring meat with a thermometer is the only way to know it's reached the safe minimum cooking temperature before serving.1
The most important part of checking the temperature of a cooked piece of meat is to take the temperature from the center of the meat – away from any bones, fat, or gristle. Because of this, when shopping for a meat thermometer, you should consider a probed unit that has the length and width to reach the center of the meat you'll be cooking. If you cook lots of small meat patties, you may require a short, thin probe, while a long, thicker stem may be better for large roasts or whole poultry. Meat thermometers can be digital or have a dial, but the digital versions are generally faster and more responsive. For a busy commercial kitchen, you may want to look for a waterproof thermometer; some can even be calibrated to ensure you continue getting the correct temperature readings over time.
A probe thermometer is a unit with a long, thin stem meant to be inserted into food to get a temperature reading from the center. Often used as meat thermometers, these are available in two basic styles:
- Pocket thermometers can be digital or have a dial face. These have the probe and readout screen as one piece and often include a probe cover for protection, enabling it to be easily carried in your pocket. Although these are convenient, the whole unit must be replaced if the probe breaks.
- A handheld thermometer consists of two separate pieces: the controller with the readout and the probe. These two are connected by a cord, and the controller is always digital. They tend to cost more than pocket thermometers, but the probe can be replaced individually if it breaks.
Refrigerator & Freezer Thermometers
While most commercial refrigerators come with built-in thermometers, it's important to double-check your equipment's accuracy with an additional thermometer, and in some locations, extra thermometers are even required by health codes. Freezer and refrigerator thermometers ensure you hold your food at safe temperatures, improving food quality and safety.
Refrigeration thermometers are available in several formats. Liquid-filled thermometers are more economical but can be difficult to read, while thermometers with dial faces are also available and include dials that read humidity. Both of these thermometer styles must be mounted inside the refrigerator, requiring you to open a door to read the temperature.
Another option is a digital thermometer. While some are simply hung inside the refrigerator, other models feature a temperature probe that is mounted inside the refrigeration unit with the readout screen on the outside of the door or on a nearby wall. These are either wireless or have a thin wire running between the two parts -- preferred in busy locations where operators want to keep HACCP-compliant records without causing refrigeration levels to fluctuate every time they check the temperature.
- Mounted on the wall inside the refrigerator and may feature a digital readout screen outside the fridge.
- Wireless or has a thin wire running between the parts of the thermometer.
- Locations that experience high-volume traffic need these to meet HACCP compliance.
Grill & Oven Thermometers
Grill and oven thermometers can help operators verify the accuracy of built-in temperature controls, equipping you with the ability to produce consistent cooking results and informing you if equipment needs service. These thermometers are available in several styles so you can find the right one for your equipment.
Thermometers for grills and smokers can measure either the surface temperature of the grill grate or the ambient temperature inside the equipment. Surface grill thermometers are placed directly on the grill grate and feature a legible dial face. Thermometers meant to read ambient temperature are for custom grill and smoker builds and can be used to replace defective thermometers; these are mounted into the smoker wall with the dial facing out and the probe on the inside.
Another option for ambient temperatures in grills or ovens is a hanging thermometer. These are hung somewhere inside the unit, but you must open the grill or oven door to check the readout.
- Measures the surface of the grill grate or internal temperature of the equipment.
- Either placed directly on the grill grate, smoker wall, or are hung somewhere inside the unit.
- Produce consistent results.
Fryer & Candy Thermometers
When frying food or making candy, the oil or candy reaches a much higher temperature than typical probe thermometers can handle. Fryer and candy thermometers are made to read much higher temperatures, with most reading as high as 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Some are made to resemble probe thermometers – dial faces atop a long, thin probe – while others are shaped like paddles or spatulas, so temperatures can be measured while you stir the candy. Almost all fryer and candy thermometers come with a clip to attach it to a pot's side for continual temperature monitoring.
Specialty Thermometers
Specialty thermometers include a range of thermometers designed for various purposes. Thermometers with plastic armor casings are available to check dishwasher cycle temperatures. Wall thermometers mounted with adhesives or screws can help you monitor room temperatures with some even capable of detecting humidity levels. Thermometers meant for specific purposes, including hot drink, tobacco, and soil thermometers, each include features and temperature ranges suited to their niche.
Another type of specialty thermometer is an infrared thermometer that can measure an object's surface temperature without touching it. Because it only works for surface temperatures, infrared thermometers cannot serve as meat thermometers; however, they can measure liquid temperatures or equipment surfaces, such as grills or griddles. These units are useful for keeping records when thawing food because they enable you to take the surface temperature of frozen foods before they're thawed enough to take an internal temperature. Some infrared thermometers include laser sighting, so you know exactly where you're measuring the temperature.
Data logger thermometers are a great option for kitchens wanting to maintain reliable HACCP data records. Working in a busy kitchen can make it difficult to take every temperature exactly when it's required, so a data logger does it for you. These use a USB or wireless connection to transfer information to a computer, where you can then log stored temperatures in your records as needed.
References
- Cook to a Safe Minimum Internal Temperature. FoodSafety.gov. Accessed September 2022.
