Canada & International

These temperatures and levels of doneness are copied from current USDA recommendations. Check the USDA website (www.isitdoneyet.gov) and other websites for more details on preparing food safely. Please consult cookbooks, recipes and personal experience to determine the best cooking temperature.

Cut of Meat	Doneness	Temp °F	Temp °C
Beef, steaks/roasts	Rare	130	55
	Medium rare	145	63
	Medium	160	71
	Well	170	77
Beef, ground	Well	160	71
Poultry, whole/part	Well	165	74
Turkey, whole/ground	Well	165	74
Pork, chops/ribs/roasts	Well	160	71
Fish	Well	145	63
Veal & Lamb	Well	160	71

In most cases, the temperature of meat will continue to rise after it has been removed from the oven or a grill. The amount of temperature rise during this “resting period” will depend on the size of the cut, ambient temperature and whether the meat is covered. It can generally be between 5ºF and 12ºF. As an example, if you prefer “medium rare” beef, you should remove the meat before reaching 145ºF. Books, TV shows and most-of-all, personal experience; will help you decide what temperatures to shoot for.

Place your temperature probe at the thickest part of a food item to make sure the meat reaches food-safe temperatures throughout. Avoid bone. Be aware that any cut of meat will be at various temperatures throughout the cut. A fast thermometer like the Thermapen will allow you to quickly probe the meat in different places and observe the temperature variance. Depending on your cooking technique, including the starting temperature of the meat, the temperature of your oven or grill, proximity of the meat to the heat source, and time; you may see a difference of many degrees.

Emissivity em·is·siv·i·ty n. Click for Emissivity Table

The ratio of the radiation emitted by a surface to the radiation emitted by a blackbody at the same temperature. It is therefore a measure of a material’s ability to emit infrared energy. Materials are assigned an emissivity value between 0 and 1.0. Most organic materials such as paints, plastics, fabrics and food have an emissivity value near 0.95. Low cost IR meters typically have a factory fixed emissivity setting of 0.95. The emissivity value of bare metals is considerably lower and so they should be measured with an IR meter that offers adjustable emissivity.

A thermoelectric device used to measure temperatures accurately, especially one consisting of two dissimilar metals joined so that a potential difference generated between the points of contact is a measure of the temperature difference between the points.

The new system is known as Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point, or HACCP (pronounced hassip). Many of its principles already are in place in the FDA-regulated low-acid canned food industry. FDA also established HACCP for the seafood industry in a final rule December 18, 1995 and for the juice industry in a final rule released January 19, 2001. The final rule for the juice industry took effect on January 22, 2002 for large and medium businesses, January 21, 2003 for small businesses, and January 20, 2004 for very small businesses.

When taking a measurement you may ask, "How fast does my instrument need to be?" The answer is, "The faster the better." The longer it takes to read, the more likely your instrument or patience will affect the reading. If you can get a reading in seconds vs. tens of seconds, your readings will be more accurate and you'll be able to take more readings in a fixed amount of time.

Here is an example of what an IP65 rating would mean: Totally protected against dust, protected against low pressure jets of water from all directions - limited ingress permitted.

First number Protection against solid objects		Second Number Protection against liquids
0	No protection	0	No protection
1	Protected against solids objects over 50mm (e.g. accidental touch by hands)	1	Protected against vertically falling drops of water
2	Protected against solids objects over 12mm (e.g. fingers)	2	Protected against direct sprays up to 15° from the vertical
3	Protected against solids objects over 2.5mm (e.g. tools and wires)	3	Protected against direct sprays up to 60° from the vertical
4	Protected against solids objects over 1mm (e.g. tools, wires and small wires)	4	Protected against sprays from all directions - limited ingress permitted
5	Protected against dust - limited ingress (no harmful deposit)	5	Protected against low pressure jets of water from all directions - limited ingress permitted
6	Totally protected against dust	6	Protected against strong jets of water e.g. for use on shipdecks - limited ingress permitted
		7	Protected against the effects of temporary immersion between 15cm and 1m. Duration of test 30 minutes
		8	Protected against long periods of immersion under pressure