Must-Have BBQ Tools – Use Probe Thermometers to Cook Perfect Meat and Fish

Whether you are having a party or just cooking for the family, food always tastes great when you barbecue it. There is, however, a problem that can occur and lead to severe consequences. Undercooked meat and fish can cause food poisoning. No one wants to be responsible for that. To prepare food to the right internal cooking temps, use probe thermometers. They will tell you what temperature the food you are cooking has reached. Therefore, you will know when to remove your meat from the grill. As with many things, your results will only be as good as the thermometer you use, so make sure it is a good one.

Choosing a Good Probe Thermometer

A perfect probe can easily cost upwards of $100, but it will be money well spent. There are so many different probe thermometers on the market that they can confuse you. Not all have to cost a great deal to be suitable, but it depends on what you need. Ideally, you should get one with a digital readout. Here you will leave the probe in the meat while it is cooking. When meat cooks to the target temperature, the probe thermometer will sound.

Certain aspects may not seem important, but they are. You need to check the battery life of the probe and the size of the monitor. You do not want to get mid-way through the BBQ and find that the battery has failed. If you want to show green credentials, a probe with rechargeable batteries will be a good choice.

Insert the probe in the thickest part of the meat to cook it well. If you place it in a thin area, the meat may have raw parts when you pull it from the grill. The ChefsTemp’s Quad XPro BBQ Thermometer is an ideal thermometer to use. It is as effective when cooking in the oven as it is on a BBQ grill. As it consists of three probes, you can track the internal cooking temperatures of three items at once. You do not need to wait by the BBQ for the entire event. You can chat with guests safe in the knowledge that the probe will control the cooking for you. If you set it to the right temperature for what you are cooking, then you cannot go wrong.

What is a Safe Temperature?

This will depend upon the product. Below are the safe internal cooking temperatures for items that people smoke regularly.

• Ground meat, including beef, lamb, port, and veal requires an internal cooking temperature of 160℉(71℃).
• Ground meat like turkey and chicken needs an internal cooking temp of 165℉(73℃).
• Ensure that you cook steak to an internal cooking temperature of 145℉(62℃).
• Fish with fins need an internal cooking temperature of 145℉(62℃).
• Cook poultry with chicken internal temp of 165℉(73℃).
• Cook fresh pork to an internal cooking temperature of 145℉(62℃).
• Cook other fish like crabs until flesh is opaque. If cooking shellfish, continue until shells open.

The ideal way to ensure that you are getting the right temperature is to use a probe thermometer.

Using the Thermometer Correctly

Even with an accurate product like the ChefsTemp Finaltouch X10 thermometer, always aim to use it well. Failure to do this could lead to people who eat your food contracting salmonella or E Coli. You could cut into the meat to see if it has cooked well, but that would be time-consuming, ruin the look and not give you an exact food temperature.

Using the thermometer is easy if you know what you are doing. When you do the correct thing, you can be sure that you will get an accurate reading with each use.

• First of all, test the thermometer. Place it in ice water and check if it reads 32 degrees F(0 degrees C). If it shows anything else – other than 32 degrees F(0 degrees Celsius), re-calibrate it.
• Make sure to check the temperature while the food is cooking. If you take it off the BBQ, it will not be accurate. Do not leave the thermometer in the food longer than you need to.
• You rarely get meat or fish with the same thickness all along the length. To make sure you cook the meat fully, insert the probe in the center of the thickest part. It will be best to leave it for 10 seconds to give it time to register correctly.
• Double-check that the reading is high enough for the product you are cooking. If it has not cooked, then leave the item to cook and check again regularly.

Cooking Fish

If you do not BBQ fish regularly, it can be worrying. One problem can be the size of the fish. It is one thing to stick a probe into a big chunk of meat, but what about when you are cooking small, thin pieces of fish?

A ChefsTemp Pocket Pro probe may be best for fish. Use this thermometer gently not to damage the flesh when testing. As the item is so small, it does fit into your pocket. That makes it more convenient. Again, the device comes with a cover so that you can put it in your pocket without the fish oils getting on your clothes.

Conclusion

Now that you are aware of the way to use a probe, shouldn’t you get one? Also, you know the correct internal cooking temperatures to target when preparing meat. We have indicated the perfect temperatures for different types of meat. How long you cook meat is vital but not very crucial.

What you need to focus on is whether the meat reaches the correct internal cooking temperature. Now you should purchase a perfect meat thermometer to make sure you cook safe food for your family. There have been many ChefsTemp models suggested here. If you choose one of them, it will make your job much easier. If you purchase one you will be pleased with the results and will still be using it for years to come.