yes, it does. You can use all your dowsing rods and meat-ruining techniques if you want, but an accurate thermometer will tell me that the middle of my steak is exactly 143 degrees, ready to be eaten after a small rest, with nary a puncture in the middle. That's the secret to always delivering exactly what somebody asked for, without cutting into it 3 times making sure it's an even pink throughout. Or getting a good breaded chicken breast to exactly 160, so it's not dried out but moist and flavorful, while still being thoroughly cooked.

same thing with making desserts -- you want 160 degrees to "cook" eggs when you're making custards. Much higher and they start clumping/solidifying, and you will start scalding dairy products.

Also, a good thermometer can be left in an oven with a base unit reading temperature. So, making a perfect prime rib roast is as easy as setting an alarm temperature (all the good thermometers do this), and taking it out at that point. Same thing with boiling water, if you're busy. Stick the probe in the water, set a temperature alarm of 212 degrees, and walk away. It'll beep when it's ready.

Personally, I have 4 different leave-in thermometers. don't spend a lot of money, a simple 20 dollar one from amazon will do you just fine.

This one, I think. I have it too.

http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-All-In-One-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1367934782&sr=8-4&keywords=probe+thermometer

Yep. Not OP, but this is what I use: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000CF5MT

One thing I would strongly suggest (if you haven't done so already) is going out yet today or tomorrow and obtaining a remote-probe thermometer with alarm - something like this. Try Target or Wal-Mart or BBB, or somewhere that sells a decent selection of kitchen supplies.

Secondly, consider employing a reverse-sear technique if time permits (it takes hours, but yields great results) . See this article.

Thirdly, if one of your company likes medium-well/well-done and you can't disinvite them (j/k), I agree with the slice-and-sear method mentioned by /u/AlabamaAviator.

Okay, so a while ago I said I was going to make a gummy bear tutorial and I never did so I thought it was about time I at least made a write up for them. This recipe will get you right around 200 gummy bears.

Tools:

• Small non stick pot with a lid
  
• medium non stick pot
  
• 60ml Syringe - Here
  
• stiff silicone spatula - Here
  
• 2 small pyrex dishes - Here
  
• Candy theremometer - Here
  
• Fork to stir with
  
• Gummy bear molds (or any other you like) - Here I also just found these
  
• Measuring Cup
  
• Measuring Spoon
  
• Strainer - Here
  
• Medium/large bowl
  
• Partchment paper
  
• A few large tupperware containers
  
• Dram droppers for the flavorings - Here
  
  Ingredients:
  
  
• 1 Package of Jello (85 grams if you have a scale) in the flavor of gummies you want
  
• LorAnn oils concentrated flavorings - Here
  
• LorAnns oils mold Inhibitor - Here
  
• LorAnns oils Preserve-it Antioxidant - Here
  
• 5 Tbsp plain gelatin powder - low quality / less chewie here High quality / more chewie here
  
• 1 tsp of Soy lecthin powder - Here
  
• 1/2 cup of Real Fruit juice of the flavor you want to make, get creative here, needs to be cold. Cold water can also be used but the flavor is not as good.
  
• 1/4 cup of sugar
  
• Glycerin - Here
  
• 6 grams of Concentrates (AKA: BHO, Shatter, Wax, Oil, Hash oil, etc)
  
• 1 Tbsp Coconut oil
  
• Cornstartch
  
  Decarbing
  
  Pre-heat your oven to 250F - 260F, use the digital theremometer to keep an eye on the temp to make sure it stays around there and does not get above 260F. I like to place my concentrates into the small pyrex dish and decarb in that. Put the dish with your concentrates in the oven for 30 minutes. You can check it around the 30 minute mark and see if it is fully decarbed. Look for it to be pretty clear of all little "carbination" like bubbles. When those are mostly gone you are done decarbing. It will take around 30 minutes. Go a little longer if you want couch lock / sleepy time gummies.
  
  When it is done decarbing pull it out and set it to the side for a minute.
  
  Infusing the coconut oil
  
  Grab your medium sized pot and put a few inches of water in it. get it to a boil then turn the temp all the way down to a very low heat. When the water is ready place your dish with the freshly decarbed oil into the water bath and add the 1 Tbsp of coconut oil to the dish.
  
  Let the two mix for a few minutes until they are nicely combined. It shouldn't take long maybe 10 minutes max.
  
  Grease your molds
  
  At this point if you dont have silicone molds (I do and I still grease mine for precautions) grease your molds so you don't forget to do it before adding your gummies.
  
  Preping fruit juice (or water)
  
  In the second small pyrex dish pour your real fruit juice / water or whatever base liquid you are using for your gummies. I havent tried much besides fruit juice and water but you can experiment with other liquids, but don't do an experiment on a batch with THC in it just in case something doesn't work out.
  
  To the fruit juice / water add 1 tsp of soy lecthin and stir with the fork. Place the dish in the fridge for 5 minutes or so and stir again. Let it sit in the fridge stirring occasionaly until the soy lecthin is fully desolved.
  
  This liquid mixture NEEDS TO BE COLD for the blooming process to work so make sure to keep it cold.
  
  Mixing the dry ingredients
  
  In your small non-stick pot mix the following together: 85 grams of Jello, 5 Tbsp of Gelatin, 1/4 cup of sugar. Completely mix them all together and dont let any of them get wet yet. Stir and stir until they are completely mixed.
  
  Blooming
  
  Take your mixed dry ingredients and pour in your friut juice (water) soy lecthin mixture. Stir it and get everything evenly mixed and make sure there are no lumps. When everything is evenly mixed place the lid on the small pot and let it sit for 10 minutes.
  
  This is called "blooming" the gelatin and allows the gelatin to absorbe the water. The water needs to be cold because gelatin activates at about 120F and after that will start to set when it cools. We don't want it setting right now.
  
  

thermapens are great if you use them all the time, but expensive if you're only using it once in a while. Seriously a $15 digital probe like this one should be just fine for cooking steaks.

Agreed with the other parts of the comment though. I prefer stovetop to oven, but you can do it all stove top if your pans aren't ovenproof. Just turn down the heat a bit when you flip it and pull your steaks off the heat ~5-10 before your desired doneness temp (10 if you're going to tent it with foil)

The major advantage of the oven method (IMO) is the decrease in smoke and it's much more forgiving time wise.

Also, you might try the frozen steak method which is pretty forgiving.

I've had this one for a year and it hasn't failed me yet. Not sure if it's quite what you're looking for, but I love it. (also, I got it because it's what Alton used a lot in earlier episodes)

http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-Timer-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT

An infrared thermometer, closely-followed by a Polder probe.

Take the guesswork out of cooking, and use these so that you aren't afraid to apply heat!

For a beginner who wants his steak cooked right, a thermometer is a must. A thermometer will not ruin the steak. Especially if you use a probe thermometer and put it in the steak before cooking. Those hand and face tricks are bullshit.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000CF5MT/ref=psdcmw_289812_t1_B000P6FLOY

No dumb questions! You can use a temperature probe like this'n, or just pull out the oven rack and stick it with a digital thermometer after ~45 min and every 10 min thereafter, depending on thickness.

Heh.. Indeed, you can buy any level of quality / price / technology in a probe thermometer, the above referenced example, I'd place on the high-end of the scale. I own, and use 2 remote probe thermometers (with alarms) and have gone through a few others in the previous years. This Polder model ( http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-Timer-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1450201255&sr=8-4&keywords=remote+probe+thermometer) can be found at local mega-marts usually, or another brand of roughly the same quality for ~$20. The Amazon sellers have them as cheap as $14 or $15. They're fairly cheap, very convenient, and typically accurate within a degree or two. (I have a Nanmac factory calibrated type C thermocouple, on a eurotherm 2704 3 loop PID controller to reference with..) /u/Blog_Pope has a very practical solution to "police" your Anova, that will alert you if there's indeed a problem... Its just that theres considerably cheaper probe thermometers than he linked to.

Plus, they're great to have around for any other cooking you may be doing.. Say butt-can chicken on the grill, or Thanksgiving Turkey, or Christmas Ham, or Tuesday night Meatloaf... Having a constant temp reading on what your protein is doing in the cooking environment, can help you avoid dry, over-done meat. Set the temp alarm for a little under your target temp, and you dont have to worry about it until the beeps! :-)

This is the one I have.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000CF5MT/

I think this is the same probe as the other poster suggested. Works great for me. Sometimes I will wrap the wire around the kettle handle once or twice to keep in somewhere in the middle of the wort. You can set alarms when you hit temps so it keeps me from constantly staring at the wort like watching paint dry.

> Fresh meat is better than the discounted stuff near its pull date.

Dry aging.

But a probe meat thermometer meant to stick into the oven is a worthy investment for roasts, especially.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000CF5MT/

Analyzing nocoffeesnob

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A few things from the top of my head that will hopefully be fresh advice:

• Get a fairly quality thermometer. Like this one, for instance. I like the ones where the probe is separate from the display because you can check the temp without messing with the cooking process (i.e, opening the door of the oven to see, etc.). The first thing you do with that thermometer is pop it in the oven all by its lonesome and test your oven- most ovens are off in one way or another- you want to find out where 350, 400, etc really sit at. This will save you much frustration in the long run. Once you know this, you are free to bake anything since that's really just following recipes. Then you use the thermometer for meat. Set the alarm to go off 5 to 10 degrees before where you want your meat to be and stick to it- perfect roasts every time. You might also want to look into the difference between FDA recommended meat temps and what you can get away with. Both pork and chicken are fine at quite a bit lower temp than is recommended. Just look into it, trust me.
  
  
• Soup. So so so many soups go: "dice onion (and sometimes celery, but I almost always omit that), sweat in stockpot with olive oil/butter/whatever, add minced garlic and sweat another minute or two, add stock and veggies and meat if you want, simmer until done. Want a thick soup? Add a couple tablespoons of flour just after you've got your onion and garlic softened- stir that around for a minute or two, then add the stock. Want a cream soup? Add cream once everything's done and off the burner. Want a cheese soup? Add cheese one small handful at a time toward the end. Soup is insanely easy.
  
  
• My frugal pork chop solution: I get a whole, boneless pork loin from Costco. You could really get it anywhere, they're almost always cheaper by the pound than pork chops, and sometimes they go on insane sales. Take that loin home, slice it in to chops. Wrap up in freezer paper after portioning out for a whole meal (for instance, I wrap them up three at a time because I'm cooking one for the husband, one for me, and one to split for the kids). Freeze 'em, except for one portion you'll likely want to cook up now. How to cook: Preheat large skillet at medium/medium high 10 minutes. Pour in some canola oil (not butter or olive oil because it will burn at this temp), then lay out the pork chops evenly spaced. No crowding, and don't touch them once they've hit the pan- you want them to get a nice brown on the bottom. Season the top with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper plus rosemary you've crushed in your hand over the pan. Wait until you can see the brown of cooked pork just creeping up the side of the loin (about 5 minutes) and flip. Season with more salt and pepper, and wait. Another five minutes maybe, and lightly press on one of the chops to get a feel for it- it should be firm but still have give. You can use the thermometer up there if you're unsure, though. Remove chops from pan, set on plate to rest. Add about a 1/4 to 1/2 cup water to the pan and return to heat. Swish around and get all the stuck on bits up. When the water's reduced and the mix looks slightly syruppy, add a tablespoon of butter. Swish around until melted, then add the chops back. Flip them over to coat, dish them out and pour remaining sauce over the top. Voila, dead easy pork chops that I get rave reviews for, and pretty damned cheap, too.

I'm Canadian, so it's not really inexpensive. But thanks for the recommendation.

That's unfortunate.

If you end up needing a replacement, decent ones can be had inexpensively.

Or you can Splurge and get the ferrari of all probe thermometers.

You definitely should get an instant read thermometer. It's an absolute life saver.

You don't have to spend much for one either. My crappy non-instant read was overpriced at $10 from a grocery store but this is the one I should have/will get.

That's kind of tough because several things on your list could run you upwards of $100/each.

I'd definitely advise starting with the knife and spending money to get a high quality one. You should go test them in store because one of the most important things in a knife is balance and one that feels right in your hand.

After that I'd go: thermometer (I like this one, you don't need an expensive one for most things), whisk, paring knife, dutch oven, food processor (again, spend the money to get a good one), cutting board, bread knife, ramekins, prep bowls

I think you can definitely live without the digital scale (until you are really into baking breads you can wing it), mandoline (a good knife is easier 90% of the time), salad spinner, blowtorch, vegetable peeler (you can peel with a paring knife)

A couple of good places to start would be a restaurant supply (whisk, china, prep bowls), a discount store like TJ Maxx (dutch oven)

Good luck!!

What I used this morning.

• Walkure Bayreuth maker
  
• [Pasquini Moka grinder]
  (https://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/pasquini-moka-espresso-grinder)
  
• Guatemala Antigua Pucal Inteligente home roasted (and sadly the last of it as you can see from the empty hopper)
  
• Hario scale
  
• Simplex kettle (not pictured)
  
• Polder thermometer
  
  
  

I generally just saute with a little olive oil or butter to get fried results that aren't completely dried out without all the oil.

If you really want to bake it instead, get yourself one of these - http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-All-In-One-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT/ref=lp_289810_1_1?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1420663578&sr=1-1 - you can set an alarm for it once the right temperature is reached. All you need to do is google what temp whatever cut of meat you're baking is safe to eat at and there you go. Just plug the thermometer into your meat and leave the other part hanging out of the oven door. Alton brown does it all the time :D

The Brewpal iPhone app.

Refractometer

Digital Thermometer w/ timer

Immersion Chiller

Butterball.com has tons of info on turkeys. Get a probe thermometer with an alarm, put the probe between thigh and breast and set to 170F. I dry the turkey with paper towels and coat with melted butter and Adobo, if you can't find Adobo, kosher salt will do. I don't measure, but don't go too heavy on the salt. Get a silicone roasting rack too which lifts the turkey above the liquids in the pan. Add celery, onion and carrots chopped up to the bottom and add some chicken broth. Put the turkey breast down, this allows juices to go thru the breast and juice it up. Brining is a pain and unnecessary to me, I've done it and don't get any big difference. Be sure to have the turkey rest or all the juice will come out , you cover with foil on the counter and make the gravy will waiting.

You don't stuff the bird because you have to overcook the turkey to cook the stuffing. Dressing on the side is just as good. If you can't find premade stuffing bread, just bake some stale bread till it is dried, online you can find details. I use a wok, but a good skillet will do. I weigh some ingredients, because what is a large onion? I use bouillon, but you can use broth.

A saucier pan has rounded corners for easier mixing, but a regular sauce pan is okay. You can use only poultry drippings if you have more. You strain the pan dripping and then reduce by half for better flavor. You should get a fat separator cup to get rid of the fat.

I've made a lot of turkeys and tried many things and this is my way of getting a great turkey. As to looks, I don't care what a turkey looks like when done, I am going to eat it, not have a photo session with it!!! LOL! As for carving, any good knife will work for the breast and a boning knife is great for the legs and thighs. Wings you eat off the bone.

~<DRESSING - GOOD OLD COUNTRY-BASIC >~

1-12oz bag-6C herbed dry stuffing bread.........4 oz crushed Ritz crackers.......6 oz bulk breakfast sausage.......8 oz ground pork......4 large stalks celery, chopped......1 large onion-212g, chopped......1 1/2 cup chicken bouillon......1/2 cup water.......1 tsp salt.......1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper.......1 1/2 Tbsp dried sage or 6g fresh........1 1/2 Tbsp dried parsley or 6g fresh......1 Tbsp poultry seasoning.......2 eggs, beaten......1 stick-8 Tbsp butter........2 large loaf pans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

PREPARE INGREDIENTS - Put everything in separate bowls:

Chop celery.

Weigh out onion and chop.

Grind crackers.

Put herbed bread in 12 qt container along with ground crackers.

Beat eggs and add to bread mixture, stir.

Grind parsley and sage.

Put parsley and sage into small bowl, add poultry seasoning, salt and pepper, mix.

Saute sausage and pork in large wok.

Add browned meat to container and mix.

Add butter to wok and when it melts add celery and onion with sage, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper mixture..

Sauté until transparent, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour over bread mixture and stir.

Add bouillon slowly to bread mixture, stir.

If needed add water.

Pour stuffing into a greased pans. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until thermometer reads 165F.

https://www.amazon.ca/Polder-362-90-Digital-Oven-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT

https://www.amazon.ca/Sundlight-Silicone-Roasting-Microwave-Bakeware/dp/B07VC3FXYG

​

~~~~~< GRAVY - POULTRY >~~~~~

3 Tbsp butter.....1/4 tsp sage.....1/4 tsp sage.....3 tsp flour.......1 cup poultry broth or bouillon.......1/2 cup saved poultry drippings(opt)..............Salt and Pepper to taste........2 tsp wine or 2 tsp cup cider and 1/4 tsp cider vinegar or 1/4 tsp lemon juice

Set heat to 3 and in saucier pan melt butter, add spices.

Keep cooking butter till it is popping, you want water to boil off about 5 minutes.

Slowly add flour. Cook until brown, 10-20 minutes.

Add wine or cider mixture, stir.

Add poultry drippings and stir.

Add stock a little at a time till you get the right consistency. Should stick to bottom of spoon.

https://www.amazon.ca/OXO-Good-Grips-Fat-Separator/dp/B0002YTGIQ

I've never added the probiotics, and I've had it turn out fine. Choose the plain version of your favorite yogurt, and you'll make a yogurt that tastes similar - you'll be adopting the same culture mix. Try other yogurts if you don't like how your first batch turns out.

My technique for keeping it warm is to put the yogurt in mason jars in a cooler with a heating pad. I fill any unused space with more mason jars filled with hot water. I have a probe thermometer sticking in there to make sure it's staying at around 100 degrees.

Alton Brown did a good episode of Good Eats on yogurt, and he had some really good tips.

I noticed that the Polder timer/thermometer was cheaper out of Amazon.ca for us Canadian shoppers.

http://www.amazon.ca/Polder-Original-Cooking-Timer-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332974970&sr=8-1

If you have access to a stovetop, try searing the chicken on medium/med-high heat for 2 mins~ a side then transfer it to the oven for 10-15 mins til cooked through. The sear is delicious and really beats the pants off plain baked breasts. I suggest a meat thermometer to help with not drying the hell out of your dinner! You can go stupid simple or a little more complex. I have both of these thermometers and use them both often.

I also highly recommend this recipe for bone in chicken.. I've done legs, breasts and wings (on grill and the oven) and it comes out fantastic.

Wings are really cheap and are damned good. Chicken breasts get boring and expensive! Wings, I do at 425 degrees for 20 mins, flip them, then do 15 mins more. If you want a good buffalo wing recipe, these are great.

You can try different things for marinades/rubs. Lemon pepper, Tony Chachere's, Adobo (or just buy Goya brand...it's salty as hell. though), etc. Marinades are fun too. Salad dressings, bbq sauce, apricot preserves, Trader Joe's Soykiaki, and so on. Just remember that if there's a lot of sugar in them, you're probably going to have sticking/burning issues. Best bet is to cook the chicken to 5 mins before done and then brushing on bbq sauce/sticky marinade. Also, if there's any acid in your marinade (vinegar, citrus), don't marinate for more than a couple hours or the acid will "cook" the chicken. Poultry ceviche isn't good eats!

My diet is very protein heavy and I just can't make a decent steak to save my life. I get sick of eggs & tuna so I've made chicken LOTS of different ways and have changed it up a lot so I don't get bored. I hope this helps! Sorry it's long. heh

TL;DR -- Vary your seasonings, buy a thermometer and get a good sear. Links and suggestions provided.

They are insanely cheap. $15 from Amazon. It can pay for itself in not ruining a single piece of meat. Bonus, they have alarms, so you can set it at the temp you want and cook undistracted.

If you're going to make a habit of grilling and BBQ, it's good to have both an insta-read, and a "leave in" thermometer.

If you can't even get close enough to the meat to even take a temp with the insta-read, it's either an awfully short probe or you're grilling over very high heat. And it's not an exact science. Reward is correct when he says grills have hot-spots. Also the meat may not cook evenly given the fat content and distribution, any bone that may still be in it, or inconsistent thickness.

Polder meat thermometer. I love it. It's been the longest lasting probe type thermometer I've ever owned, and I've gone through a fait number.

The kind I used was a little white square with an LCD display, with a metal tip on a 3 foot metal cable. Cheap.

Like this, but you can find cheaper ones. The cable makes it easier to keep it in the pot, and handle: https://www.amazon.com/DIGITAL-IN-OVEN-THERM-TIMER/dp/B0000CF5MT

This is kind of neat, but you can just get one of these for under $20, and it will beep at you when your ham is done. Bonus: this thing is designed to go in the oven so won't melt and poison you if the oven gets too hot.

I have two of these: http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-Timer-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1422105644&sr=8-2&keywords=polder

Work perfectly and easy to operate. Oh, and they are magnetic so it's easy to just stick them to the side of something for storage.

Do it oven first, then sear. That way there is no need to rest it afterwords as the oven evenly heats it and the moisture remains evenly distributed. That way your steak is the right doneness, but at the highest temperature so it's nice to eat. Get something like this so you can set an alarm for when it hits the temp you want it to be while it's in the oven. It seems that the consensus is 350f oven temp. If you're unsure about if your oven is getting the temp right, one of these will come in handy.

http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-All-In-One-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT/

The Polder is a good quality tool, I've had this one for years.

I have had

http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Original-Cooking-All-In-One-Thermometer/dp/B0000CF5MT

for over a year now and it works great and also has a timer.