I have no experience of the Thermapop but I can tell you the Thermapen is well made, fast and reliable. I use it for all cooking and with bread it certainly beats tapping the base of the bread! (not always accurate).
They are expensive but here in the UK can be bought as 'reconditioned' direct from the manufacturer via Ebay at up to half price :)
Using one of these takes all the guesswork out of baking, and as for cooking steak you will be amazed at how cooking 'by eye' simply overcooks the meat !!
I have the thermapen, and use if for grilling, since having an instant read is pretty important. For bread, I have used the thermapen DOT with the corded wire http://www.thermoworks.com/products/alarm/dot.html The alarm temp is very easy to set, and i don't need an instant read if I want to know if the desired temp has been reached.
and now you think thermapen DOT makes more sense? How was thermapen more complicated?is the cable wire something that stays in your bread, near the end of the guessed bake time i assume(?), and then you have to be close by and the wire hangs out of your oven?
is it because it sits outside your oven and allows you to sit and eat dinnner or whatever and basically the alarm goes off vs thermapen without the wire you would have to be looking at the numbers with the oven open or thru the glass? going to see if they have it on amazon.
I still have a thermapen, and used it in the past for baking, but the DOT makes more sense for baking. The thermapen is great for the grill, you open the grill, stick the pen in, and in a few seconds you have the temp, and can either put it back on the grill, or put it on a plate. With baking, to check the temp with a thermapen, you have to open the oven, insert the thermapen, read the temp, then make a decision as to whether it needs more time, then check back in a few minutes and repeat the process. With the DOT, you stick the probe in the loaf at some point, say after 10 minutes, then thread the cable out the oven door, and set the alarm point. Once the temp has been reached, the DOT will start beeping, so you don't have to check the numbers every few minutes. Understand that most baking, the temp is not the sole indicator, and there are many that suggest you shouldn't use the temperature to judge when it is done, you judge it by appearance. For me, I use the DOT the first few times I make a recipe to get the timing in the ballpark
i wonder if my toddler could pull the wire and it willbe another attraction with safety concerns .
do poeple find thermapen inconvienent at all with opening up the oven a lot? i am just starting out with sourdough so i guess i may need to plan to be in the kitchen at that time anyway. now i need to decide. i like the idea of an alarm though , after all that work!
I take the bread out of the oven, probe it, and if it's not quite there I put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes............ no big deal really :)
What I can tell you is that there are times when the bread 'looks' done or 'sounds' done but the probe confirms any suspicions and removes the final guess work.
Also it is true to say that as you gain more experience and get to 'know' your skills, flour and oven, you find it all just 'works' any way :)
Like Chockswahay , I tend to probe it when it is out of the oven. I just want to avoid underdone bread and with a thermometer there is never any guess work.
I am about to buy one. I think I need one for bread and an oven one but why not a 2 in 1.
I am about to buy one. I think I need one for bread and an oven one but why not a 2 in 1.
I have no experience of the Thermapop but I can tell you the Thermapen is well made, fast and reliable. I use it for all cooking and with bread it certainly beats tapping the base of the bread! (not always accurate).
They are expensive but here in the UK can be bought as 'reconditioned' direct from the manufacturer via Ebay at up to half price :)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Splash-Proof-SuperFast-Thermapen-3-Professional-Digital-Food-Thermometer-/371613283723?var=&hash=item5685e0b58b:m:m8lbewC8GZ...
Using one of these takes all the guesswork out of baking, and as for cooking steak you will be amazed at how cooking 'by eye' simply overcooks the meat !!
Just get one, you know you want to! :)
Yes its true I want one. But EBay what a grand idea.
I have the thermapen, and use if for grilling, since having an instant read is pretty important. For bread, I have used the thermapen DOT with the corded wire http://www.thermoworks.com/products/alarm/dot.html The alarm temp is very easy to set, and i don't need an instant read if I want to know if the desired temp has been reached.
and now you think thermapen DOT makes more sense? How was thermapen more complicated?is the cable wire something that stays in your bread, near the end of the guessed bake time i assume(?), and then you have to be close by and the wire hangs out of your oven?
is it because it sits outside your oven and allows you to sit and eat dinnner or whatever and basically the alarm goes off vs thermapen without the wire you would have to be looking at the numbers with the oven open or thru the glass? going to see if they have it on amazon.
I still have a thermapen, and used it in the past for baking, but the DOT makes more sense for baking. The thermapen is great for the grill, you open the grill, stick the pen in, and in a few seconds you have the temp, and can either put it back on the grill, or put it on a plate. With baking, to check the temp with a thermapen, you have to open the oven, insert the thermapen, read the temp, then make a decision as to whether it needs more time, then check back in a few minutes and repeat the process. With the DOT, you stick the probe in the loaf at some point, say after 10 minutes, then thread the cable out the oven door, and set the alarm point. Once the temp has been reached, the DOT will start beeping, so you don't have to check the numbers every few minutes. Understand that most baking, the temp is not the sole indicator, and there are many that suggest you shouldn't use the temperature to judge when it is done, you judge it by appearance. For me, I use the DOT the first few times I make a recipe to get the timing in the ballpark
i wonder if my toddler could pull the wire and it willbe another attraction with safety concerns .
do poeple find thermapen inconvienent at all with opening up the oven a lot? i am just starting out with sourdough so i guess i may need to plan to be in the kitchen at that time anyway. now i need to decide. i like the idea of an alarm though , after all that work!
... but big fan of Thermapen - easy to use, reliable, fast.
ThermoPop is too slow. Six seconds is a long time with your hand in the oven.
I take the bread out of the oven, probe it, and if it's not quite there I put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes............ no big deal really :)
What I can tell you is that there are times when the bread 'looks' done or 'sounds' done but the probe confirms any suspicions and removes the final guess work.
Also it is true to say that as you gain more experience and get to 'know' your skills, flour and oven, you find it all just 'works' any way :)
Thanks for all the amazing feedback.
Like Chockswahay , I tend to probe it when it is out of the oven. I just want to avoid underdone bread and with a thermometer there is never any guess work.