A shout out to my meat thermometer

It seems that we are trying to measure and track a lot of things these days. Whether the data is actually valuable or useful or accurate is another story. 

There is one tool that I use regularly in my kitchen, and it is data that is certainly useful and reliable.

This is a shout out to my meat thermometer. Thank you for all you do to cook delicious meals for my family!

I made a London broil on the grill this week. It’s a more affordable cut that, when cooked properly, is absolutely the best.

I seasoned it simply, with a generous amount of salt and pepper just before putting it on a preheated grill (you can read more about the importance of salt timing here). I cooked it for about 5-8 minutes per side until my handy meat thermometer read 138F, then let it rest for 10 minutes. 

The result was a juicy, tender, absolutely delectable meat cooked “medium”. The inside had a thick band of light pink. The sides had a rich brown color. And the top and bottom were charred and crispy.

The entire London broil was gobbled up by my family of five. Thank you meat thermometer!

For cooking beef, a meat thermometer helps with doneness, whether you like it rare, medium, or well. 

For cooking poultry or pork, it helps you cook it until just done. This means you won’t have the utter disappointment of serving uncooked inedible unsafe meat. And, you also won’t overcook it, having the tough realization that you’ve prepared a tough meal. Instead, you will have juicy, just right meat.

Sure, you can also test for doneness by feeling the “squishiness” of the meat or “just knowing”. But this can take a lot of practice. And some people (maybe myself included) cannot develop this “second sense”. Why not objectify the process with a simple meat thermometer?

Using a meat thermometer is really easy. Here are some basic tips:

• Get a digital instant read thermometer. These tend to be the most accurate.
• Place the thermometer in the thickest part of the meat, avoiding fat and bone.
• Push the thermometer half way into the meat. You want to read the internal temperature.
• Check your meat temperature early and often. 

A meat thermometer is small and inexpensive and easy to use, and I believe that every kitchen should have this tool. If you love delicious and perfectly cooked meat, make use of a meat thermometer!