ANGUS STEAK THERMOMETER
For beef eaters, a meat thermometer is a necessary tool, since temperature and cooking times play a decisive role in the successful preparation of a roast, be it roasted, grilled or pan-fried. This device is a real help in preventing food poisoning by not undercooking, in preventing burnt food, guaranteeing the success of the preparation.
Analogue or digital, instant or permanent measuring, oven or just for outdoors, it’s hard to choose from the multitude of offerings on the market. Here’s a brief overview of the technical features and the most important aspects to make your choice an inspired one.
Meat thermometers can be oven models or instant read models. Oven or permanent readout models are those that are inserted into the meat from the start, indicating the temperature throughout cooking.
In order for this type of thermometer to indicate the temperature correctly, a few steps must be followed:
- Before placing the meat in the oven, insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the meat, the part that takes the longest to cook. Do not insert it into the bone as it will indicate an irrelevant temperature.
- Place the meat in the oven at the temperature and time recommended in the recipe.
- Leave the thermometer in the meat throughout the cooking time.
- Check the thermometer between 5 and 10 minutes before the end of cooking time. Once the thermometer indicates the cooking temperature of the dish (depending on the type of meat chosen), carefully remove it from the oven using a kitchen glove. Don’t forget to wash the thermometer with warm soapy water after each use.
Instant-read models are thermometers that do not remain permanently in contact with the food; the meat must be removed from the oven to measure the internal temperature of the roast from time to time.
Thermometers with connector cable have a long and resistant high-temperature. wire. It connects to a rod that you insert into the meat and a digital display that allows you to view the temperature from the outside.
The analogue dial thermometer is more robust and does not need batteries. It offers a dual scale, in Celsius and Fahrenheit. Some models include markings on recommended internal temperatures for certain types of meat. The digital display thermometer makes it easier to take an accurate reading and has the ability to remember the last measurement on the display.
Once the thermometer is chosen, there are a few tricks left to have a properly cooked meat:
High temperature in oven
An oven thermometer allows you to juggle the baking temperature. A higher temperature at first will help form a nice crust on the outside, keeping the juices inside the meat; then lower the temperature for gradual, deep cooking. This will make the meat soft on the inside and crispy on the surface.
The 4% rule
To achieve a rare or medium rare doneness, you have to take into account that the internal temperature of the meat will still increase by about 4% after you take it out of the oven.
For example, if a steak needs to reach 54°C and is cooked to 100°C, it will need to be removed from the oven when the probe reads 50°C.
How do you know when your roast beef is ready
If you don’t have a thermometer handy yet, but have a roast beef in the oven, you’ll know it’s done when the fibers give way and break easily with a fork.
Take care of ventilation
Air circulation in the oven increases baking efficiency. If you are working to a recipe created for a static oven and you are using ventilation, reduce the temperature in the instructions by 20 – 30°C to achieve the desired result.
