7 best meat thermometers for roasts, steaks and bakes

Sure, you can set an oven timer and hope for the best, but for perfectly cooked roasts, steaks, and bakes, you’ll need a meat thermometer.

If you’ve gone to the effort of sourcing top-notch ingredients to make a beautiful meal, you don’t want to be disappointed at the last moment by overcooking your dish. While things like poultry must reach a certain temperature to be deemed safe to eat, you might prefer serving ingredients such as beef pink in the middle. This can be awfully hard to gauge without cutting into it, by which point it’s too late. For big events when the pressure is on, a meat thermometer is fantastic as a final check. Easter lamb or Christmas turkey can be an expensive treat which you want to get exactly right.

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We tried a selection of gadgets, from the straight-forward analogue, through to app-paring probes! Some of the digital styles we tried will alert you with a loud beep when your meat is done, while others simply give you a super speedy, accurate temperature, which you might choose to use at intervals throughout your cooking time. Not all can be used both in the oven and on the hob, so bear that in mind before making your selection.

To test these thermometers we got busy in the kitchen with a seasonal box of grass-fed meat from an online butcher, The Dorset Meat Company. Choosing a selection of meats, cuts and cooking methods, we roasted chickens and beef joints for Sunday lunch and flipped juicy steaks on the hob.

We used multiple gadgets on the same piece, to see how accurate our readings were, while also making a note at which were the most user friendly. Although each of these gadgets is slightly different, the probe should always be inserted into the thickest part of the meat, away from any bones to ensure an accurate reading. Don’t forget to thoroughly clean the probe after use.

Although these handy kitchen gadgets tend to be called meat thermometers, some can also be used when baking cakes, making jam or tempering chocolate, making them a versatile (and on the whole, inexpensive), gadget worth investing in.

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Meater plus with Bluetooth repeater meat thermometer

Ok, so it’s not cheap – but once you’ve tried this wireless smart meat thermometer, you’ll wonder how you ever cooked without it. It links to the brand’s app and works up to 50m away, meaning you can be out in the garden, and also keep an eye on what’s happening in the kitchen. You insert the slimline probe into the meat like normal, then select the type of meat and desired outcome (for example, medium-rare beef) and the app predicts the cooking time. It also takes into consideration resting time too and will let you know when your meat is ready. Very impressive!

Buy now £99.99, Meater

Polder digital meat and poultry probe in-oven thermometer

Designed to be used in the oven, this thermometer also has handy pre-sets (but at a fraction of the price!). You just select your meat (chose from beef, veal, lamb, pork or poultry), let it know how you’d like it cooked (for example, medium-rare) and stick the tip of the probe into the thickest part of the meat. Then in goes your meat, and the "dashboard", which is connected by a wire, sits on the countertop. A loud beep will let you know your meat is approaching its desired temperature, another will alert you when it’s ready and you’ll also get a three-minute timer so you know how long to rest your meat for. We tested it out on a piece of rump steak and it came out absolutely perfectly. It can be used for both Celsius and Fahrenheit and there is also an open setting if none of the pre-sets are suitable. It’s not the much attractive piece of kit, but all in all, we think this is an absolutely brilliant gadget at a very reasonable price.

Buy now £24.99, Lakeland

Thermo Chef measuring fork digital meat thermometer

It’s not small, but this two in one thermometer has large prongs, so doubles up as a carving-style fork for big roasting joints. We used this as a "final check" before letting it rest, having put our chicken in the oven for an hour and 20 minutes. Like Lakeland’s in-oven version (above), you can select from pre-sets and it beeps when it reaches the temperature selected, but you will need to hold it in place while you wait. Just a word of warning – batteries aren’t included, so don’t get caught out.

Buy now £15.99, Lakeland

Heston Blumenthal digital meat thermometer by Salter

If you’re looking for a more versatile thermometer, this slim design by cookware brand Salter, in collaboration with Michelin star chef Heston is ideal. Reading to 0.1 degrees, it can be used to check roasting joints, for cooking meat on the BBQ, and for making sweet treats like jam or tempering chocolate. It slides into a pen-type casing with a clip for easy storage, which can also be used to loop onto the side of a hot pan to save your fingers getting too hot. There’s also a magnetic "info card" listing Heston’s recommended temperatures – but we were a little worried we might end up losing it.

Buy now £24.99, Salter

Salter instant read digital meat thermometer

This stripped-back version works very similarly to the above. There’s no fancy case and you’ll have to memorise the ideal temperatures (or keep the mini paper booklet it comes with) but if you don’t mind that you’ll save yourself a tenner. We found the temperature was every bit as accurate, and we appreciated the large LED display which was easy to read. To save the battery, this space-saving probe will also switch itself off after 45 seconds of inactivity – handy!

Buy now £15.00, Borough Kitchen

OXO good grips digital instant read thermometer

Unlike the gadgets above that come with external booklets with recommended temperatures, OXO has printed its info on the probe cover so you’ll never lose it. It gives readings in both Celsius and Fahrenheit and has a clear display on a pivoting head to make it easy to see wherever you are in the kitchen. We tried it in a sponge cake and a chicken breast and received accurate responses on both occasions.

Buy now £22.00, Selfridges

Marks & Spencer stainless steel meat thermometer

We quite like the retro-look of this analogue gadget. Made from stainless steel, you can use it in the oven or on the hob. There are handy animal infographics so you’re aware of the minimum safe temperatures for the likes of beef, chicken and pork, but with no way of alerting you, you’ll have to keep a close eye on it. It’s never going to be quite as precise as a digital thermometer but will give you a steer in the right direction for extra peace of mind.

Buy now £10.00, Marks & Spencer

The verdict: Meat thermometers

If you’re looking for a multifunctional kitchen gadget that can be used on the hob, in the oven and with a BBQ, the innovative Apption labs meater smartwireless meat thermometer is a great option with accurate results, but it doesn’t come cheap! For something a little more affordable, we were very impressed by how easy it was to use the Polder digital meat and poultry probe in-oven thermometer. It produced perfectly cooked meat every time – although do bear in mind, this one can only be used in the oven.