Remember Three Words for Accurate Temperature Readings: Swirl, Stir, Drag

But there’s some technique involved with temping caramel and oil. In both cases, there are hot spots to consider. And if you’re taking the temperature of a relatively small volume of liquid, as is often the case with caramel, your thermometer’s probe might register the temperature of the sides or bottom of the saucepan instead of the caramel.

The next time you have to temp a Dutch oven of oil or a saucepan of caramel, keep these three words in mind: swirl, tilt, and drag. These small but effective moves will help you get the most accurate reading.

• Gently stir oil before taking its temperature. This evens out hot spots and is especially useful if you’re using a clip-on probe thermometer, which is affixed to the side of the pot.
• Drag your thermometer back and forth in the oil for a few seconds before taking a reading. This is another way to ensure that you’re getting the temperature of more than just one spot.

• Swirl caramel around the pan before taking its temperature. This averages out the hot and cool spots so that you know the temperature of the entire batch, not just one section of it.
• Tilt the pan before taking a reading. This pools the liquid together and makes it deep enough so that your thermometer’s probe takes the temperature of the caramel—not the sides or bottom of the pan. If you’re using a clip-on probe thermometer, tilt the pan in the direction of the probe.
• Drag your thermometer back and forth in the caramel for a few seconds before taking a reading. This is another way to ensure that you’re not taking the temperature of just one specific spot.

To truly master the technique, you need the right tool. Here are our favorites.

• Our favorite instant-read thermometer: The ThermoWorks Thermapen ONE is our favorite instant-read thermometer and has been for years. It’s fast, accurate, and easy to use. It has all the handy extra features we like (a long folding probe, a simple backlit display that rotates depending on your orientation, and an automatic sleep mode) and none that we don’t.
• Our favorite digital leave-in thermometers: Our co-winners are the ThermoWorks ChefAlarm and ThermoWorks Square DOT. The ChefAlarm has a single probe and is rich with special features, including a timer, both high- and low-temperature alarms, and maximum and minimum temperature recording. The Square DOT is a much simpler tool that comes with two probes, allowing you to take the temperatures of two things simultaneously.