Perfect your grilling with Thermapen ONE

Even after years of preparing steak, fish or even chicken, do you still find yourself having to cut into your protein to make sure it’s cooked just right or well enough? Personally, even though I’ve used a typical thermometer, I think it’s due to a combination of its inaccuracy and perhaps some of my ineptness as a grillmaster.

Wading through the sea of gadgets, a good solution is Thermapen ONE by ThermoWorks. It’s an easy-to-use stand-alone hand-held thermometer, high tech on the inside but quick, simple, accurate and compact on the outside.

One second readings

Thermapen ONE is a follow up to the Utah-based company’s highly successful Thermapen MK4. While looking virtually the same, it’s faster, even more accurate and with a longer five-year warranty period. While it may seem counter-intuitive that the ONE designation comes after four, the ONE refers to the speed at which it will give you a reading, one second and with accuracy within 0.3 degrees C (0.5 F). For comparison, the MK4 gives you an accuracy within 0.4 degrees C (0.7 F), but it requires two to three seconds for a measurement.

Now a second or two may not seem like much, but, for example, if you’re trying to ensure proper cooking for multiple burgers using a single thermometer, every second counts. It can also save your skin if you’re reaching into a scorching 450-degree oven.

At first glance, Themapen ONE resembles an oversized pocket knife, measuring 6.1-in. wide by 1.7-in. high by 0.74-in. deep and weighing a mere 0.25 lb. (115 g). The hidden 4.9-in. coated probe with a narrowing tip folds out and can extend straight out, up to 180 degrees. The one-eighth-in. (three mm) tip on the probe shaft houses a micro-thermocouple sensor, which is actually what measure the temperature.

It has a waterproof body, a large easy-to-view 6.1- by 1.7-in. rotating LCD display with an adjustable built-in backlight light sensor that adjusts to the ambient lighting, so you can see it on a bright day or at night when its dark.

Button-free design

The beauty of the design is it has no buttons or switches. Simply fold out the hinged probe and it turns on, close it and it shuts off. It also motion-sensing, falling into sleep mode after an idle period and waking up when it senses movement when picking it up. It’s a great way to save battery power.

You can also personalize certain features accessible from the battery compartment at the rear. You will need a Philips screwdriver to access it.

The beauty of its display is it can be configured to either a 180-degree two-way, or 360-degree four-way rotation, so you’re not kinking your neck checking the temperature. You can also toggle between Celsius or old-school Fahrenheit temperature scales, set the readings to show increments of either one-tenth or one degree, and set the sleep function to engage from 10 seconds up to 180.

The battery, a single 1.5V AAA, comes preinstalled and is rated to last up to 2,000 hours. Of course, results will depend on use and how often the backlighting kicks in. There is a low-battery indicator and the unit is smart enough to automatically reduce backlighting to preserve battery power that when the battery is low.

After using it for a few seasons, I found myself getting better at testing for doneness especially on fish and chicken – but it’s still a work in progress. Me, not the thermometer. It’s also getting significant use in the kitchen in addition to the barbecue grill.

Thermapen ONE can measures temperature ranges from -58 degrees F to 572 F (-49.9C to 298.9C). Beyond meat, it can also measure other things, such as the temperature inside your fridge, your child’s bathwater and even monitor your steamed milk as you strive for that perfect cafe latte.

Thermapen ONE comes with a 20-page guidebook, operating instructions and a unique calibration certificate, as each one is pre-calibrated at the factory by hand. It comes in 10 colours and retails for US$99 and available directly from thermoworks.com.

They’re made in the UK but ship from the U.S. For Canadian orders, the company offers a special FedEx shipping rates from $12, which includes prepaid duty and taxes, so it comes right through to your door.