Almost served raw chicken to my in-laws because my instant read thermometer was off by 15 degrees

I was grilling chicken thighs for a family dinner and my new thermometer said they hit 165, but when I cut into one it was still pink inside. I tested it in boiling water and it read 197 instead of 212, so it had been lying to me the whole time. Has anyone else had a digital thermometer fail on them like this without warning?

3 comments

3 Comments

sandraflores14d agoTop Commenter

Oh man, that happened to me with a thermometer I bought off Amazon for like 12 bucks. I was making a big Thanksgiving turkey a couple years ago and it said the bird was at 180 in the breast but when I pulled it out the juices were still pinkish. I ended up having to throw it back in the oven for another 45 minutes (which dried it out completely, ugh). I checked it in ice water later and it was off by 18 degrees, so now I always test a new one in boiling water before I trust it with anything important.

susan13014d ago

Thermometers from Amazon can be hit or miss for sure, but I actually have a different take on this. The boiling water test is good for checking high temps, but it won't catch a serious calibration error at lower cooking temps. I've had cheap ones that were fine at 212 degrees but completely wrong at 150 or 160. That's where most cooking happens for meat safety. So I think the ice water test is actually more important for everyday cooking. Plus even if the thermometer is perfect, you still have to let the bird rest for at least 15 minutes after pulling it out. The juices run clear only after it rests and the temp keeps climbing. Probed it at 180 and pulled immediately sounds like it might have lost all its moisture from the heat alone, not just a bad thermometer.

sarah_hart11d ago

Yeah the ice water test makes sense for lower temps but even that can be tricky if you don't have enough ice or the water isn't stirred right. I've actually had better luck just buying a decent instant read from a restaurant supply store or even a known brand like ThermoPro for around 20 bucks. The problem with those super cheap Amazon ones is the calibration can drift over time too, not just be off out of the box. And resting the bird is huge, I've pulled turkeys at 155 in the breast and after resting they hit 160 easy, way juicier than letting them sit until 180 on the probe. So yeah, good point about the resting and the lower temp calibration, just wish more people talked about that part.