Taylor Stainless Steel Candy and Deep Fry Thermometer, 12-Inch Analog Paddle with Pan Clip, Ideal for Frying, Sugar, Brewing, Syrup, and More

As I have never had a candy thermometer, I was expecting this one to be not much bigger than the photograph, so the actual size (2" by 12") was a bit of a surprise, but after studying the unit, it is quite logical and the design makes excellent sense. I selected the Taylor Classic Candy and Deep-Fry Analog Thermometer, because it is analog, which is fancy way of explaining that it uses technology of the 19th century or earlier. No batteries; no computer chips; no wires; no probes, and so forth. In other words, once you use it for a while and by doing so "get to know it", it will continue to work the same way day after day, week after week, and year after year. Ideally, it is calibrated accurately at the factory, but if you took a course in Physics or Meteorology and stayed awake, then the general concept of "calibrating" becomes a bit nonsensical with respect to this particular thermometer, which also is highly dependent on the altitude of your kitchen, as well as ambient weather conditions at the time, because for the most part stuff like this is "calibrated" either (a) at the factory using factory conditions or (b) at the factory based on being at an altitude of 0 feet (or "sea level") at standard atmospheric pressure and a certain temperature, which is fine if you either (a) live in the same town as the factory or (b) live on the beach under a coconut tree. However, if you are in a city at a higher altitude like Denver ("The Mile High City"), then you know that water boils at a lower temperature than 212 degrees Fahrenheit and that baking cakes and making Italian Meringue frosting requires vast skill in the finer aspects of organic chemistry, as well typically as an entirely different set of ingredient quantities (for example, less baking powder and one fewer egg or whatever). In other words, everything is relative, and "everything" includes the pots, pans, stove (coal, electric, natural gas, propane, wood), and lots of other stuff, which unless you are one of the people who "just knows" how to cook and bake everything perfectly the first time with no practicing, then the reality for you is that you need to do the recipe over and over until you discover exactly how to make it work perfectly every time, which for roast duck took me two years of roasting at least one duck each week, which was great and made it easier to discover the secret to stellar roast turkey in just one year, which to be specific is to sprinkle approximately one (1) tablespoon of fenugreek on the turkey, along with salt, pepper, onion powder, and about the same amount of powdered sage, even though nobody in their right mind ever would think of using fenugreek as a spice for traditional roast turkey, but I tried it, and it works. Back to the candy thermometer, there is a very nice sliding clip to attach the thermometer to the vertical side of a pot, and the bulb is approximately 1/2" from the metal base of the thermometer, so you want to select a pot that is the correct size for there to be at least approximately 5/8" to 3/4" of liquid, where for example if you are making the candy syrup for Italian Meringue and are using 1 and 1/2 cups of sugar and 1/2 cup of water, then use a small diameter pot, so that the saturated sugar solution will be sufficiently high for the candy thermometer to work correctly, which will be a pot with a diameter of approximately 6 inches or perhaps a bit smaller, and the sugar syrup bubbles, so it works, or if not then make twice as much. Sugar is not so expensive, and the important thing is to get the sugar syrup just right, where ideally if you slowly drip it from a teaspoon back into the pan, at the end it will form tiny balls and there will be spider-web strings of sugar syrup like cotton candy or whatever. Light Italian Meringue is a mess, and the only way to get it right is to use the correct number of egg whites and to have thicker sugar syrup, as well as not to whip it too long after you add the sugar syrup, at least if you are at a low altitude, where you want to add the sugar syrup and then whip it perhaps a minute and then stop while it makes nice peaks and holds them, because if you whip it for 5 to 20 minutes, it will be like Elmer's Glue, so if you are at a low altitude (200 feet above sea level or lower), then the rules are thicker sugar syrup and avoid over-whipping. You can add Cream of Tartar or a little bit of lemon juice to the egg whites, but that is cheating. It tastes best if you do it the hard way, which is sugar, water, egg whites, and a tiny bit of vanilla extract, where the egg whites of four extra large eggs works nicely with 1 and 1/2 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract. You might need to do it 10 to 25 times to get it right, but once you get it right and can repeat it reliably it is well worth the effort, and it is vastly important to use fresh egg whites. Summarizing, the Taylor Classic Candy and Deep-Fry Analog Thermometer is well made and bigger than it looks (2" wide and 12" long"). It uses "old school" technology, which is excellent and reliable, and when you use the correct size pots and pans, it is a professional grade cooking thermometer, for sure.

Candy making is an art. The right pans, spatulas , spreaders, and most of all thermometer, are essential.

Love it, it works great and easy to clean.

In reading the negative reviews, I was quite skeptical of getting these. But since my old digital candy thermometer died and I'm trying to do more caramels and high temp sugar work this season, I needed something I could rely on. I got these specifically as a recommended product from a few candy bloggers. So I got 2, one as a backup. I did calibrate: doing a dry run with just water; to ensure that these were a) reading accurately and b) I was able to read them clearly. Both are very important, as with sugar cooking even one degree off, and you're entire batch is thrown in the garbage. So for the first part: Both came a bit off in temp readings. So I did calibrate them and got them reading accurate, they were off by about 2 degrees at first. Not a huge deal and fixing the readings wasnt difficult. As for the 2nd part, you do need to kind of contort yourself to read them correctly. This was a negative and why it was only four stars. They're easy once you get the hang of it though, which again, why it's 4 and not 3 or lower. To address concerns for the other skeptics: glass thermometers work and become more accurate the more they are submerged. So, while the water worked, because the water line was up about the 200F mark on the thermometer, that was good. When I made my first batch of caramels though, the caramel line wasnt even reaching the 100F mark. As a result it looked as though the thermometer was "stuck" at 216F and would not read any hotter. Frustrated and using the digital (which has no clip and is quite difficult to use while stirring caramel) for accurate readings, this first batch kinda got overcooked. I was about to leave negative feedback and return both of the thermometers (as the backup also "stuck" at 216F") I remembered about how much of the thermometer was submerged. So I used a different pot that was narrower and taller. Now the base caramel line was solidly at the 140F mark. This batch was quite successful and the thermometer read accurate through to the end. I took random readings with the digital thermometer to be sure. Bottom line: This is an excellent thermometer for the price. It could stand to be a bit easier to read, but otherwise a great thermometer. I have no fears about relying on it for future batches of caramels or other sugar cooking temps.

I purchased the Taylor Stainless Steel Candy Deep Fry Thermometer for my kitchen, and I couldn’t be happier with it! The thermometer is 12 inches long, which is perfect for deep frying and candy making. The stainless steel construction is sturdy and easy to clean, and it feels very durable. What I love most is how accurate the readings are! I’ve used it several times for making candy and frying food, and the thermometer consistently gives me the correct temperature readings. The analog dial is easy to read, and it’s quick to register the temperature, even when the oil is very hot. The clamp works well to attach it to the side of the pot, keeping it securely in place while I cook. It's also great for avoiding overheating the oil for safety, and I’ve had excellent results for making caramel, fudge, and frying perfect crispy foods every time.

Really great quality and easy to clean

Very helpful always uses when frying foods

Works very very well. I've had this thing for 2 years now and I've used it to make christmas hard candies and caramels each year. It works very well and I haven't really had any issues with it, though it does have a limited number of places it will fit storage wise. I usually just hang it. My favorite part about it is the little metal "foot" at the bottom that keeps the glass bulb from touching the bottom of the pot. This means that you can set it down in the pot, with the foot touching the bottom and still get an accurate reading. I haven't managed to make use of the clip, because with the recipes I use, the pot is already quite hot before it's time to put the thermometer in. Wearing oven mitts would be too bulky to try to attach the thing, but it still works well in the pots I use. I only realized this year that the clip is adjustable and not set in one place. Going back to accurate readings. I've read that you should always "proof" your candy thermometer if you haven't used it in a while by boiling a pot of water and putting the thermometer in after it's been boiling for a while (a rolling boil, not just a few bubbles, mind you) and subtracting the result from 212 degrees to get the temperature difference. Then you subtract that number from any temperature specific recipes you have. Mine is off by 8 degrees, so to reach hard crack (300 degrees) I let it sit in there until it reads 292 degrees for example. The thermometer is a bit hard to clean under the glass thermometer part, but I've worked out a way around that too. I just proof my thermometer before every batch of candy. The thermometer is already mostly clean at that point, the only sugar residue is lurking behind the glass tube. When I proof it in a pot of boiling water, it dissolves the rest of the residue getting it clean clean clean and I continue to get accurate readings. In theory, running it through the dishwasher would get most of the residue off as well. I've run mine through the dishwasher a couple of times and it was fine, but I don't know how it would hold up long term.