A candy thermometer, also known as a sugar thermometer or jam thermometer, is a cooking thermometer used to measure the

temperature Temperature is a physical quantity that expresses quantitatively the perceptions of hotness and coldness. Temperature is measured with a thermometer. Thermometers are calibrated in various temperature scales that historically have relied on ...

and therefore the ''stage'' of a cooking sugar solution. (See

candy making Candy making or candymaking is the preparation and cookery of candies and sugar confections. Candy making includes the preparation of many various candies, such as hard candies, jelly beans, gumdrops, taffy, liquorice, cotton candy, cho ...

for a description of sugar stages.) These thermometers can also be used to measure hot oil for

deep frying Deep frying (also referred to as deep fat frying) is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot fat, traditionally lard but today most commonly oil, as opposed to the shallow oil used in conventional frying done in a frying pan. No ...

. There are several kinds of candy thermometers available. These include traditional liquid thermometers, coil spring "dial" thermometers and digital thermometers. The digital thermometers tend to read the temperature more quickly and accurately, and some models have an alarm when the thermometer hits a certain temperature. Many models have markers for the various stages of sugar cooking. A candy thermometer is similar to a

meat thermometer A meat thermometer with a dial. Notice the markings for each type of meat A meat thermometer or cooking thermometer is a thermometer used to measure the internal temperature of meat, especially roasts and steaks, and other cooked foods. The de ...

except that it can read higher temperatures (usually 400 °F/200 °C or more).

See also