Smoking Meat At Home This Summer? You'll Need One Of These

What’s the key to tender and flavorful smoked meats? A reliable thermometer that lets you know just when your meat is cooked to perfection, no matter what you’re preparing. The best meat thermometers for smoking provide quick and precise temperature readings so you can monitor your recipe’s progress and, ideally, relax a little. After all, some smoking recipes can take over 12 hours! Depending on the type of smoker you’re using and your preferences, you’ve got a few options when it comes to deciding which thermometer to buy.

For the most accurate read on your smoking recipes, it’s essential to know the ambient temperature within your smoker and the internal temperature of your meat. Look for a thermometer with at least two probes, especially if your smoker’s temperature gauge is broken or unreliable.

Digital thermometers let you set the cooking time and temperature, and have presets for smoking common cuts of meat. The more sophisticated models work wirelessly so you can receive alerts if you step away from your smoker. If you’re the type of person who enjoys monitoring the process (a ritual for some people), this extra functionality is not necessary, but be sure your thermometer makes an audible alert when temperature or time is reached. How much technology you want is a personal preference.

The best meat thermometers for smoking will give you an accurate read on your smoked recipes and offer peace of mind that you’ll end up with great results every time!

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1. The Best Thermometer For Smoking Meats: ENZOO Wireless Meat Thermometer With Four Probes

ENZOO Wireless Meat Thermometer With 4 Probes$44.99|AmazonSee on Amazon

Enzoo’s wireless thermometer comes with a total of four temperature probes, so you can read the internal temperature of several pieces of meat simultaneously, as well as the ambient temperature of your smoker. With a temperature accuracy of plus or minus 1 degree, it only takes between one to three seconds for the Enzoo to read temperatures ranging from 32 degrees to 572 degrees Fahrenheit.

Due to its remote range capabilities, the Enzoo can be operated via a receiver from as far as 500 feet away, so you can carry on doing other things at home while your recipes cook. The thermometer can be programmed for time or temperature, and it's loaded with a menu of common food loads to help you cook everything to the perfect (and safest) level of doneness. The large digital readout is easy to view and it even comes with a protective case to organize all of your new smoking accessories.

According to one reviewer: "I'm in Texas so when I use the smoker I'm usually smoking brisket and that can mean cooking for 12 hours or more. It is important to try to maintain a steady but low temperature and that means monitoring the temperature of both the cooking chamber and the meat very carefully. This thermometer fits that need very well. It is very solid and comes in a nice case for storage. It has four probes that are made very well. What I like the most is that it has a main unit and a receiver, which allows me to monitor the temperature from a distance very easily."

2. The Runner-Up: Inkbird Bluetooth Wireless Grill BBQ Thermometer

Inkbird Bluetooth Wireless Grill BBQ Thermometer$51.99|AmazonSee on Amazon

This Bluetooth digital thermometer from Inkbird also comes with four probes, making it a great option for people who want to smoke more than one item at a time. Rather than a separate receiver, the thermometer can be controlled and monitored via a mobile app on your smartphone. The app is pre-programmed with 12 different meat modes, and time and temperature (with a reading range of 32 degrees to 572 degrees Fahrenheit) can be set manually.

The unit will function within a 150-foot range, and it works best in outdoor areas for the clearest connection. A cool bonus? Rather than traditional cell batteries, the Inkbird has a rechargeable internal battery that connects via a USB port, and it can be used while charging. When fully charged the battery will last up to 40 hours.

According to one reviewer: "I'm a first-time owner of a wood pellet smoker/grill, and haven't done a ton of smoking in the past. One of the great things about a pellet smoker is the set-it-and-forget-it cooking style, but when you're not monitoring the meat every minute, it's more difficult to judge when to take it off the grill. My first couple attempts came out tasty but dry and overcooked. This product allows me to monitor the temperature of the food on my phone from the comfort of my home, about 40' away. It also tells me when its done! I can monitor 4 things at once, so I usually put one probe in each type of meat I'm cooking so that I know just when each is ready. It's simple to setup and use, and every cook I've had while using it resulted in meat that was not only tasty, but properly cooked and juicy. It even turned around my wife's opinion of the grill!"

3. The Best Value: ThermoPro Large LCD Digital Cooking Meat Thermometer

ThermoPro Large LCD Digital Cooking Meat Thermometer$18.99|AmazonSee on Amazon

If you don’t need the bells and whistles offered by the wireless options above (or if you’d rather not spend more than $40 on a digital thermometer), this ThermoPro digital cooking thermometer is a terrific choice. Priced reasonably under $20, it has over 11,000 Amazon reviews. While the ThermoPro is only designed with a single probe, if you have a smoker with a reliable temperature gauge and plan to only cook one food load at a time, this should be sufficient for your needs.

The probe itself is long, so it works well for large cuts of meat and can even be used for different sorts of recipes, like candy-making. The thermometer is pre-programmed with USDA temperature recommendations for a variety of meats and has a range of 32 degrees to 572 degrees Fahrenheit. The timer can be set to count down or up to 99 hours and 59 minutes, and the easy-read, large display shows the set and current temperature clearly.

According to one reviewer: "This is a great thermometer. I like the fact that it beeps when a desired temp is reached. When I'm smoking meats, I'll set the temp at 3-4 different levels and adjust my heat based on how quickly the temp is met. The beeping is not obnoxiously loud, but, it can be heard from 30-50 feet away (and I love that)."