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Regional, seasonal food with original recipes by Susan S. Bradley

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Home/Fresh Primers: All/Temperature Guide for Cooking

Temperature Guide for Cooking

LunaCafe Cooking Temperature GuideEven seasoned cooks who depend regularly and almost instinctively on their sense of sight, smell, sound, and feel to gauge degree of doneness in foods, also depend on a temperature guide and a thermometer. Sometimes the cook is fooled by a lovely brown crust that hides a doughy interior or a custard that seems too thin, yet is sending forth contradictory signals of overcooking. In these and dozens of other instances, using a thermometer makes perfect sense.

Every kitchen should have two thermometers. The first is an instant-read thermometer with a thin probe that registers accurately within 10 seconds of insertion. It usually reads between 40º and 260º Fahrenheit, which is useful for many things, from measuring the temperature of water intended for dissolving yeast to the temperature of a pot roast. The second is a deep fry/candy thermometer. The temperature reads from 200º to 400º Fahrenheit and is perfect for testing hot oil and sugar syrups.

Armed with these two tools, the following guide to temperature should get you cooking to the right degree.

Testing  Your Thermometer’s Accuracy

Test your thermometer’s accuracy by placing it in boiling water. At sea level, it should read 212°F. If it reads above or below 212°F, make the necessary recalibration when testing a food’s temperature.

Converting Fahrenheit Degrees to Celsius/Centigrade Degrees

If you need to convert Fahrenheit degrees to Celsius/Centigrade degrees, subtract 32, multiply by 5, and divide by 9. To convert Celsius/Centigrade degrees to Fahrenheit degrees, multiply by 9, divide by 5, and add 32. Oh heck, just go to this online calculator.

NOTE   All degrees indicated are in Fahrenheit at sea level. At higher altitudes, subtract 1°F from every listed temperature for each 500 feet above sea level.

General Temperatures

5º-10º          Cream gains this much heat when whipped with unchilled beater and bowl
5º-15º          Degrees roast will increase by after removal from the oven
20º              The minimum temperature at which frozen foods should be stored
29º              Egg freezing point
30º              Best egg storage temperature
32º-40º      Normal refrigerator temperature
36º              Eggs straight from the refrigerator
40º-140º    Danger zone for bacterial growth
50º              Minimum temperature for keeping crabs and lobster alive
60º-125º    Bacterial growth danger zone
60º-100º    The flavors of salt, sweet, and bitter are best perceived
80º-95º      Yeast is liveliest in this temperature range
140º             Yeast dies at this temperature
145º-161º    Temperatures for pasteurizing milk
149º             Egg whites coagulate
156º             Egg yolks coagulate
160º-170º   Ideal temperature for hollandaise when making
175º             Alcohol boiling point
180º             Water temperature for melting gelatin
180º             Ideal temperature for cooked custards; go no higher
180º             Maximum temperature for milk or half & half enriched soups without flour
185º             Bread is done
185º-205º   Best coffee brewing temperature

Meat Temperatures

135º             Rare beef
140º             Desired temperature for ready-to-eat ham
145º             Medium-rare beef
145º-150º    Medium-rare lamb
180º-185º     Preferred by some cooks as desired temperature for cooked pork
150º              Minimum degree for pork, allowing a 13º safety margin for killing trichinae
160º              USDA-approved temperature for  medium pork (not considered safe below 160º)
160º              USDA-approved temperature for  ground beef (not considered safe below 160º)
160º-165º      Well-done lamb
165º-170º      Safely cooked pork; my temperature preference
165º              USDA-approved minimum safe temperature for cooked poultry.
175º-180º      Cooked chicken; French temperature preference
190º               Cooked chicken; American temperature preference

Fish Temperatures

110º-120º      Cooked saltwater fish
120º             Cooked freshwater fish (to kill parasites)
180º             Water temperature for poaching fish
375º             Temperature for pan frying fish
450º             Best temperature for broiling fish

Oven Temperatures

200º-250º      Very slow, very cool, or warm
250º-300º      Slow or cool
300º-350º      Very moderate
350º-375º      Moderate
375º-400º      Moderately hot to hot
425º-450º      Hot to very hot
450º-500º      Very hot
550º             Most broiler temperatures
1000º           Self-cleaning oven temperature when cleaning

Stove-Top Temperatures

195º             Low simmer
210º             High simmer
212º             Boiling water at sea level; light or vigorous boil
213º-214º Boiling temperature of salted or sugared water; 1 teaspoon per quart
250º             Maximum pressure cooker temperature
250º             Butter smoke point
300º             For seasoning lightly oil-coated pans in the oven
325º             Water drops dance on skillet surface
325º             Black pepper burning point
350º             Clarified butter smoke point

Sugar Syrup Temperatures

230º-234º   Thread
234º-238º   Soft ball
238º-244º   Medium ball
244º-248º   Firm ball
248º-254º   Hard ball
254º-265º   Very hard ball
265º-285º   Light crack
290º-300º  Hard crack
340º             Caramel

Chocolate Temperatures

51°               Gamma (type I) crystals start to form
69°               Alpha (type II) crystals start to form
78°               Beta prime (type III and IV) crystals start to form
84°               Cool melted chocolate for tempering
85°               Beta (type V) crystals start to form
85°-87°      Melt chocolate for tempering
88°               Beta (type V) crystals melt
115°             Chocolate may scorch
125°             Chocolate burns

Smoke Points

375º             Olive oil
375º             Vegetable shortening
420º             Sesame oil
440º             Peanut oil
475º             Corn oil
495º             Soybean oil
510º             Safflower oil
600º            Flash point of most oils
700º            Fire point of most oils
550º            Most broiler temperatures

Cookin’ with Gas (inspiration from around the web)

  • How Temperatures Affect Food | USDA
  • Safe Minimum Cooking Temperatures | Food Safety
  • USDA Safe Food Chart | USDA

Copyright 2000-2017 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.

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Susan S. Bradley

Intrepid cook, food writer, culinary instructor, creator of the LunaCafe blog, author of Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cooking, and former director of the Northwest Culinary Academy. Read More…

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