Infrared Thermometer

ChefBrian

Anybody here use one with thier egg? I am wondering how it would work to get accurate temps at the grate? And the relation between inside and outside temps.

PhilsGrill

Outside, yes. Inside fire temp, yes. Grate, no. IR beam spreads to wide and will pick up the entire fire.

Celtic Wolf

and they are useless for cooking temps of food since they only measure the surface..

Great for making sure food is cold enough before the cook though..

Michael B

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I have this one.
It is an expensive tool that doesn't really give you any useful information with this application.

Dome temp: Is taken care of with the analog dome thermometer.

Grid temp: An infrared thermometer can’t read grid temp. It would read through the grid and give you the temp of the coal bed, averaged out over the sample area. For grid temp, place the temp probe of an analog thermometer (dome thermometer) or remote digital thermometer between the dome and base shell of the Egg as you close the dome.
If you are cooking indirect, make sure the temp probe is shielded from direct heat by one of the plate setter’s legs.

Food temp: You cook to an internal temp. An infrared thermometer measures surface temp.

The only temp I can think of that an infrared thermometer could give you, that might be at all useful, would be the surface temp of a pizza stone.

UnConundrum

I agree with Michael. A lot of fun (I can tell you how hot my wife is ) but only limited use with the egg. I check my pizza stone and it can be used for a cast iron pan or skillet if needed, but won't help much with the actual food.

bitslammer

Have to agree with first 2 replies. They are of limited use but do work well for certain things.

I like to do seared Sesame Seed Encrusted Tuna in a cast iron skillet to get the full surface sear on. For that the IR therm. tells be when the CI skillet is ripping hot. Takes those dewvils longer to get up to 500*F+ than you think but once they're there they hold a ton of heat.

I also do an odd egg dish cooked for a long time at 153*F. See: http://discovermagazine.com/2006/feb/cooking-for-eggheads/article_view?b_start:int=1&-C=

I use a baking thermometer in the port for this but also use the IR for spot checks since the old baking therm. is slow to respond to changes in temp. In this dish going over 165*F for even seconds ruins the texture of the egg whites.

Michael B

Interesting read.
So, what egg dish are you cooking at 153*?

Beanie-Bean

ChefBrian

I use a little grid thermometer (shaped like a hockey puck) I picked up at one of the BBQ shops for about $8, and it works like a champ. Did you already drop some bucks on an IR thermo?

bitslammer

Michael B wrote:

Interesting read.
So, what egg dish are you cooking at 153*?

I do a dish where I put those 65*C (153*F) eggs on Prosciutto on slices of toasted that small cocktail loaf light rye.

Hard to describe in words but the whites are white but still very fluid, and the yolk is set but it's still translucent and pliable. I'd say it has the consistency and texture of something like a soft cheese. It looks like a translucent yellow rubber ball or marble. When done just right there's no trace of the hardening and opaque color.

And the taste???? :P If you start with good fresh eggs from a good source you will be egg heaven. The trick is to put something in the pan so they don't touch bottom and overcook and to stir very frequently.

Michael B

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Sounds interesting. I'll have to give it a try... Friday, I think.

ChefBrian

Thanks for the replies. Pretty much confirms what I was thinking. My main thought was if I could open the lid and get an accurate grid temp it could have been a useful gadget. I'm always looking for new toys.