A passion for cooking meat comes with an obsession with getting everything just right. Down to the specific degree of temperature. This means you likely have some kind of an accurate thermometer that you probe your product with throughout the process. It may even be wireless so you can monitor it from a receiving device (these have been around for a while). However, what if you could do more than that? Technology is ever-evolving after all.
This is where the MEATER+ Long-Range Smart Wireless Meat Thermometer comes into play. Something we have seen recently floating around places like Amazon, wondering if it was something worth looking at since the price is 2-3 times that of some of the cheaper options that are available. Then the day came for us to get our hands on one for a test.
Testing something like this requires repetition (partially as an excuse to eat like a king for a week). So we did just that, putting this against a number of attempted meals to see how it performed.
Design
The MEATER+ line of thermometers come with a fresh-looking design. The thermometer (we’ll refer to it as a probe from this point on) looks like a nice stylus, resting within a slim block of bamboo. Everything is light in weight and looks as though it was designed by the Cross luxury pen company.
You find a small black button and LED on the block, as the block acts as a hub that bridges the probe to your smartphone (iOS or Android). These provide you with the current charge and connectivity status of the probe to the hub. A nice design that allows you to get pretty far from what you are cooking. Far as in, up to 165 ft away (and more, which we will get to in a moment).
The back-side of the hub features a small plate that easily removes from the back, revealing a AAA battery (Duracell) that comes with it. This is what keeps the probe charged when it is stored in the hub. There are also two small magnets built-in that allow it to easily be mounted on a fridge or other metal surface.
Then there is the app. Available for either iOS or Android, it connects the hub to your phone and walks you through whatever you are cooking to the degree. Even the second as it counts everything down as it reaches the temperature you seek.
Even better, it has cloud access that gives you access to everything live over the internet. So let’s say you are smoking or slow-cooking something in the backyard and can safely walk away for some time to hit the store or visit a friend. You can take out your phone and monitor everything live over the internet. It even supports Amazon Alexa.
Setup
The app is pretty easy to along with. Setting everything up will walk you through everything you need to know, along with the features of the MEATER+.
It helps you get everything connected to your phone and ready to go. The whole process doesn’t take much time at all. It provides insertion animations so that you know how to properly insert the probe into various situations and how not to get it too close to the source of heat (don’t let it tough the source directly, etc).
Performance
The whole process is easy. Choose what you are looking to cook within the app, insert the probe, and watch your meal do its thing. You can worry about preparation, spices, and other side dishes. The app will let you know when it is time to go back to your meat. It lets you know when you are about a minute away so that you can get ready to do whatever comes next (like, serving, and enjoying every last bite of it).
The first attempt to use it was outside on a George Forman grill with burgers. It didn’t fare so well as it asked to be taken off the heat immediately. It could be the way the Foreman cooks and that the ambient temp sensor didn’t like being so close to the cooking surface. It was an odd experience and we didn’t come back to this.
The next attempt was nearly a complete success, but any fault was not that of the MEATER+. This round was filet mignon as we were trying to teach one of ours how to properly cook it from the stove to the oven to serve. They didn’t consider that it continues to cook within the cast-iron skillet as you take it out, or if you let it rest in the skillet. So the temperature got a little higher than it should have by the time it hit the plate.
Then we ran with a round two with an experienced cook. Everything was properly seared on the stove with everything it needed for flavor (which isn’t much). The probe was inserted as it moved from the stove to the oven since we didn’t care about temperature yet until this final phase where the deep cooking takes place. Within no time at all, MEATER+ accurately pointed out that it was a min out and that the temperature was getting close. It was pulled out slightly before to compensate for any time spent within the skillet before it reaches the plate. By the time it hit the plate, a nice 135 F and it was perfect.
We can see how useful this can be for longer cooks where you might find yourself leaving the house for supplies or other purposes. This is where it really shines beyond some of the cheaper options out there.
They also offer a set of 4 probes in a single hub/block, where the block is larger and comes with a built-in display with battery life and more. That way you can monitor multiple pieces or sections of what you are cooking.
Our Conclusion
Normally, you’d think that this is far too expensive to rate highly compared to some of the other wireless options out there that can connect to your phone. However, this one pushes to do so much more having the ability to monitor it from anywhere via the internet–making this a must for long projects in a smoker or slow cooker. The accuracy is fantastic and they really have put a lot of thought into making it user-friendly. We absolutely recommend this if it is within budget, and you find yourself cooking a lot of complicated meals that spend a lot of time within the cooking process. For everything else, it is an added luxury.
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Our Rating | Average Price* $99 |
*Average price is based on the time this article was published
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