The best meat thermometers

A closer look: A hold function freezes the reading, so you can pull the probe out of a hot oven and check the number away from the heat. Rinse the probe under the tap after each use, and now and then dip it in iced water to see whether it needs recalibrating. It switches itself off when left idle, so a forgotten thermometer won’t flatten the battery.

A closer look: Left-handed cooks get a fair deal here, as the screen turns itself the right way up whichever hand holds it. Press lock before pulling it out of a hot oven and the reading stays put while you step back, and afterwards the whole thing can be rinsed under the tap, then stuck to the fridge by its magnet or hung from its hook hole.

A closer look: Each probe sits on a cable of about a metre, long enough to run out through a closed oven door or barbecue lid to the transmitter outside. Choose the meat and one of five doneness levels, or set your own target, and don’t be thrown if the box says TempPro rather than ThermoPro, as either name may turn up.

A closer look: At 11.5cm, the probe reaches the middle of a thick joint or a Christmas turkey without your knuckles getting near the heat. Only the probe is waterproof, so wipe the body clean rather than holding it under the tap, and keep the temperature guide from the box handy until you know your target numbers by heart.

A closer look: Meat is only the start: it’s just as good at checking sugar when making fudge, milk for hot chocolate or the middle of a loaf. Give the probe a wipe or a rinse between raw and cooked food, and the backlit screen stays easy to read once the sun has gone down on a barbecue.