Buy a small one, at walmart, for like 30-40 bucks. Use it outside. More expensive fryers are mostly for aesthetics and in my experience dont fry any better. You might however like name brand stuff that has your favorite "Kitchen aid" logo that you would like to match to the rest of your kitchen. If this is you, then spend the extra money if you want. I personally just want bang for the buck, and i don't leave my fryer out on my counter as a showpiece or anything. Others might tell you im full of shit and their $80 or $150 dollar fryer is much better, which is fine but unless you plan on frying a ton of stuff, and you need a ton of room to fry large batches of stuff, a small reasonably priced fryer will do just fine if you maintain it well and keep it clean. Here are some examples:

• $30.00 (Farberware 2.5L / 4 stars on 93 reviews / 1 basket) http://www.walmart.com/ip/FARBERWARE-2.5L-Single-Deep-Fryer-Stainless-Steel/22866798
  
  
• $39.99 (Farberware 4.0L / 4.5 stars on 189 reviews / Dual Baskets) http://www.walmart.com/ip/FARBERWARE-4L-Dual-Deep-Fryer-Stainless-Steel/22866797
  
  Reason? Well, a small fryer lets you fry in small batches. Unless you have a large family and need to fry a ton of stuff, this is the way to go. Sure, you might have larger temperature changes due to the size ( when you drop food in it drops the temp sometimes complicating or even ruining your cooking ) but the small size lets you change the oil easier, clean it easier, and store it easier.
  
  Because lets face it, hopefully your not planning on eating a TON of fried food. Sometimes making some cheese sticks, jalapenos, mushrooms, french fries, wings, etc is great, but it shouldn't be a majority of your eating experience. Unless you don't care about personal health.
  
  ProTip: use it outside. Reasoning: Your house will smell like a french fry. Plus, grease flies out of the fryer and gets on everything, and it will get on everything in your house. The stench will permeate your couch, carpets, clothes, and more. You will leave home to go to work, run errands, etc... and you'll come home to that nice, greasy egg roll smell as you open the front door.
  
  Its not pleasant. I learned this, and started frying outside. I also got a small fryer that had great reviews and wasn't super expensive. The parts, except the heating element, are all dishwasher safe. Also you will save money by not buying, or buying INTO, the whole sealed fryer with carbon filter blah blah blah. If you plan on keeping a fryer that features that indoors, it'll still smell. You still have to open the fryer at some point while cooking, which again, makes your house smell. And I HATE that smell in my home. Ive had a $120 dollar fryer and it performed just like my $30 dollar model, just looked super snazzy which i don't give a flying f** about since its not a counter-top item that gets daily use in my household.
  
  My .02 anyways. I hate the house smelling like a french fry, and a small fryer is easy to store in your garage, easy to clean and operate. Plus i have a small 2 year old daughter and since i only use it outside on the porch, shes never around it which minimizes any injuries ( that could be catastrophic... grease burns / fires are serious biz )
  
  At the end of the day, a fryer is a simple device. Heating Element, temp knobs, bucket for grease, and a basket with a lid. There are more expensive options, but your paying for brand name, looks, and you might want to drop 75-100 bucks for one that has a digital readout that can* be more accurate.
  
  I myself have a digital thermometer in my kitchen i use for steaks and such ( any good cook should have one imho ) but it also helps me verify temp. With that said, i have i think the $30 dollar model i posted and its temp control is spot on. If you do want a digital one, i personally would just get a non digital one, then invest in a thermometer since you can use it for SO many things, including your new deep fryer. I also have a "laser thermometer" that works as well and can be used again for many many things in your home.
  
  
• $16.98 (Nubee Handheld Digital Laser Thermometer) http://www.amazon.com/Nubee-Temperature-Non-contact-Infrared-Thermometer/dp/B00CVHIJDK/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1418956988&sr=1-1&keywords=nubee+thermometer+gun
  
  
• $14.46 (Comark Digital Handheld Pocket Thermometer)
  http://www.amazon.com/Comark-Instrument-Digital-Thermometer-Accuracy/dp/B001U59MDA/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1418957150&sr=1-1&keywords=comark+PDT300
  
  I have both styles of thermometers, and i use my pen style a lot ( its like the bottom one, but mine is white and i got it at a local grocery store for about 10 bucks... has a hold button but is pretty much the same deal )
  
  Hope I helped you. Good luck and be safe!

Sorry for the delayed response, busy week. It is funny you mention filtering your water. When I first got my fish I was buying gallons of distilled water from the grocery store and I live in Washington which has some of the best tap water in the world.

Ok so here we go:

• It sounds like you have excellent tap water. Use it with some Prime and you will be all set. No need to get different water.
  
  
• Absolutely get a non-tank thermometer. This is essential. I literally keep a 6$ standard meat thermometer sitting on my sink windowsill just for this very reason. You do not need anything fancy. Mine is like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Anpro-DT-10-Instant-Digital-Thermometer/dp/B01HV5AL9G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1487866346&sr=8-3&keywords=meat+thermometer ($8). This is essential in my opinion as temperature fluctuations are extremely stressful. Try to get it within 2 degrees and error on the side of warmer as the water will cool naturally as you transport it.
  
  When you ready to spend a bit more $$$ I highly suggest a Python water changer (https://www.amazon.com/25-Foot-Python-Aquarium-Maintenance/dp/B000255NXC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1487866713&sr=8-1&keywords=python+water+changer). It connects to a sink faucet and uses your water pressure to syphon the tank super easily and makes it so you can refill straight from your sink tap (no carrying water anywhere). A note: when applying seachem prime to your new water when using a changer, you can just dump the dose of prime right into your tank and fill it with the tap water as Prime acts almost instantly. For good measure I generally turn my filter off for a few minutes just to avoid chlorine potentially getting in the filter somehow.
  
  
• Catfish...are a bit tricky. You need to very careful about which kind you get. Please heed my advice as I just returned one to the fish store to be adopted out because it almost trippled in size in 2 months.
  
• Do not, under any circumstances, get any type of Plecostomus. here are some pictures: (https://www.google.com/search?q=plecostomus&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiXq6L_0KbSAhVG4mMKHaq1A2IQ_AUICCgB&biw=1566&bih=909) Even the smaller types of Plecos should be kept in much much larger tanks. Not only will a small tank dwarf their growth which is very bad for fish, but they are extremely fast and violent with their movements. They will literally scare the crap out of your Betta sometimes. Not to mention, they are some of the crazyiest waste producers in fresh water aquariums. Since you mention "bottom feeders" Im assuming you arent really trying to replace whatever is on the bottom of your tank with more fish poo :). As I mentioned I just took one back to the pet store to be adopted out because he was so powerful and had no business in a small tank.
  
  
• DO consider getting either Corydoras Julii (http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/corydoras-julii/) or Otocinclius (http://www.aquariumcarebasics.com/freshwater-aquarium-fish/otocinclus-catfish/). I have both and they are super cute. They are also some of the best algae eaters in the game. If you are going to get some, make sure you have algae "tabs" (the food) to supplement because your tank may not have enough algae in it for them to live off of and they need more food anyway.
  
  (NOTE ON CATFISH: They are naturally schoaling fish. This means they like to be kept in groups and if they are not they will not really know how to act properly and won't be "happy". Both the Corydoras Julii and the Otocinclus will stay very small throughout their life. I would say 3 bare minimum with 4 or 5 being better if you have the space.)
  
  
• If you want "Bottom Feeders" as in workers that will "clean up" the tank I HIGHLY suggest Amano Shrimp or Nerite Snails. The snails can be a bit messy with their waste and if you get a female they like to lay tiny white eggs on stuff, but they are some of the most efficient tank cleaners in the game. Amano Shrimp are amazing and are really fun to watch. I once had a neon die and only knew because they shrimp were all bunched up in a corner going ham on its carcass -,-. Nerite snails are dirt cheap if you can find them and my local fish store sell Amano Shrimp for about $4 a pop. 3 - 5 shrimp or 3 snails would be great in a 10 gallon and they don't bother the Betta at all.
  
  
• As far as how many fish you can keep in the tank (Called Bioload), This is really more dependent on how strong your filter is and how often you want to have to clean the tank. Without live plants in the tank (this is a whole other beast) More fish = more ammonia and if the Bacteria can't handle the ammonia load they will not be able to convert everything to Nitrates. For the record, live plants create an incredible buffer for mistakes in your system. They naturally process some ammonia and they love nitrogen (nitrates). I would highly recommend looking into some easy-to-care-for low maintenance live plants when you are settled in. In my little 5g with a Tetra Whisper 10 (Pretty weak filter) at one point I had 7 tetras, 2 snails, a betta, and a plocstomus. It was very crowded, but keeping up with water changes and whatnot everyone seemed ok. Tetras are generally happier in larger schools, like 10 minimum with it being suggested to keep an odd number (I don't know why). For the time being, since you are trying to get the tank cycled and get the fish happy, don't add anymore.
  
  Finally in regards to bioload, wait to add any more fish period until you can tell that the tank has been cycled. This will simply make it easier to keep a more controlled environment and keep the stress levels down.
  
  
• Hopefully this statement will help relieve a lot of stress on your jouney: Fish, like people, have many different temperaments and one betta can spend its entire life acting completely different than the betta in a tank next to it. Some fish are just down-right lazy, and some like to eat their tails :).
  
  Further, since you are cycling the tank right now, that inevitably creates stress for your fish. Even the slightest ammonia or nitrite spike is not fun for them. Until your tank is fully cycled, he is going to be grumpy and may spend a lot of time acting differently than you did when you first got him. Once the tank is cycled then I would be more aware of monitoring his behavior.
  
  My older betta spends the ENTIRE DAY either sleeping on his plant leaves, hiding behind his filter, sitting on the thermometer or sitting in a pineapple. He is such a lazy jerk. This is also the fish that lived through like 6 months of pure neglect as I had no idea what I was doing when I got him. He was sitting in unchanged water for months at a time :( and is the whole reason I undertook trying to get better at this.
  
  
• As far as baffling your filter, is the flow adjustable? I'd love to see a GIF or a picture of how strong the current is. You have to maintain a delicate balance between too much current and maintaining enough surface agitation that there is sufficient gas exchange (how your fish get oxygen). My favorite way to slow down filter flow is to get some Polyfill (the stuff you put in pillows, sold at craft stores for DIRT cheap) and just stuff some down into the filter. Polyfill is also an awesome filter media as it has a lot of potential for bacteria to latch onto it.
  
  TL:DR - Yes, just let him rest :). Keep up on the water changes, and buy a thermometer as soon as possible. When the tank is stable, get 5 more tetras and 3-4 Corydora Julii or Otocinclius Catfish and a couple shrimp :).

If you don't mind a slightly lesser output than the Sportsman 6000/7500 dual-fuel, I'd recommend:

Champion 100231 dual fuel for $680.
5500/6900W (5000/6250 on propane)
Up to 10 hrs on 6.1 gal (6.5 hrs on 20 lb propane) at 50% load
74 dBA
3 year warranty
TSC link

There is also a similar non dual-fuel for $650 at TSC, Champion 100452 if you don't need dual fuel. I didn't link it but you can search for it on TSC.


If you can go even lower, Champion 100519 for $850.
5000/6250W inverter
Up to 12.5 hrs on 4 gal at 25% load
69 dBA
3 year warranty
Acme preorder

Both generators have a 3 year warranty vs Sportsman 1 year, both are quieter (I think Sportsman is spec'd at 80 dBA), both are mor efficient.

Sportsman would use up 16.5 gal/day (9 hrs @ 50% load on 6.2 gal).
Champion 100231 would use up 14.6 gal/day (10 hrs @ 50% load on 6.1 gal)
Champion 100519 would use up 7.7 gal/day (12.5 hrs @ 25% load on 4 gal)

Up to you to decide what works best.
The non inverters have more output but is louder and the output is not pure sine wave, so some electronics and UPS backups will not run off AC power when hooked up to a non inverter generator. Sensitive electronics won't like it either.

Inverter generators are quieter and more efficient. They are rated at 25% but you have to realize that 25% of 5000W is 1250W. Your emergency backup loads will usually be under that, except when your fridge or well or large loads kick in. You save a boatload of gas going the inverter route. (Example: ethanol free gas @ $4.30 a gallon would be approx. $25 - $30 per day in operating costs when comparing 7.7 gal/day vs 14.6 gal/day). Also think about how much gas you would have to store, you'd need approximately double to go non-inverter with above options.

I know it's not quite apples to apples, so you need to decide what matters to you. Do you want dual fuel (keep in mind running on propane will reduce the output by ~ 10%), does noise level matter, do you want to run as long as you can with the gas that you have at hand, etc.

I had used a 3500/4000 Champion to power a 1/3 or 1/2hp well pump and it handled it with a 32" TV, my linear compressor fridge, some fans, lights. When not running the well, I could run my furnace or a portable 10kBTU air conditioner. That said, I feel like the inverter generator at 5000/6250 I linked above would probably let me run both. If you throw an additional large appliance like chest freezer in to the mix, then I'm guessing you might be pushing your luck and might have to turn one thing off but if you're willing to do that, then the inverter might be a good choice for you.

I put these sensors in my refrigerator and chest freezer to monitor the temps so I could turn off the freezer if needed to run other loads (washer, portable air, etc) which helped me get by with a smaller generator and still make sure my chilled stuff stayed cold Accu-rite sensors

Basically gonna echo most of the answers already posted, but just to pile on:

• 8" chef's knife. 10" is longer than may be comfortable and 12" is longer than necessary, but 7" may start to feel a little short if she's ever slicing large melon or squash. I'm a casual knife nerd and I have knives by Wusthof, Victorinox, Shun and Mac. My favorite.
  
  
• This Dutch oven. Enameled and cast iron just like the Le Creuset that a few other comments have mentioned, but much, much cheaper. I own two and they're both great. I also have the non-enameled version for baking bread, but I don't recommend it for general use unless you're a Boy Scout. Here's an entertaingly-written blog post comparing the Lodge vs. Le Creuset in a short rib cookoff.
  
  
• This cutting board and this cutting board conditioner. The importance of an easy and pleasant to use prep surface can't be overstated. I'm listing this third on purpose; this is one of the most important things your kitchen can have. A recipe that calls for a lot of chopping is no fun when you're fighting for counter space to do the chopping, or doing it on a shitty plastic board.
  
  
• A cheap scale and a cheap thermometer. Seriously, these are as important as the cutting board.
  
  
• Just gonna crib this one right off /u/Pobe420 and say cheapo 8–10" (I recommend 10–12" but that's my preference) nonstick skillet. One note I'd add is that pans with oven-safe handles are a bit more dual-purpose than pans with plastic or rubberized handles. You can't finish a pork chop in the oven in a skillet with a rubberized handle. But one could say you shouldn't be cooking a pork chop on a nonstick pan to begin with. The important thing is to keep this one cheap: you're going to be replacing it every couple of years, there's no getting around that. For my money $30 or less, and $30 is pretty expensive for these things.
  
  
  

• Cookbooks
  

  Nothing inspires cooking like a good cookbook collection. The great news about cookbooks is that they're often bought as gifts or souvenirs and they make their way onto the used market cheap and in great condition. Here are my suggestions for a great starter shelf:
  
  

1. The Food Lab by J. Kenji López-Alt. I kind of hate that this is my number one recommendation, but I don't know your wife and I do know J. Kenji López-Alt. This one is brand new so you're unlikely to find it used and cheap, but as a catch-all recommendation it has to take first place. Moving on to the cheap stuff:
   
   
2. Regional French Cooking by Paul Bocuse. This is possibly the friendliest authoritative book on French food out there, and a hell of a lot easier to just dive into than Julia Child (Julia is the expert, and her book is an encyclopedia). Bocuse is the undisputed king of nouvelle cuisine and people like Eric Ripert and Anthony Bourdain (so maybe a generation ahead of you and I) came from him. Paul Bocuse is French food as we know it, and yet this book—an approachable, coffee-table sized thing—still has a recipe for fucking mac and cheese. It's outstanding.
   
   
3. Theory & Practice / The New James Beard by James Beard. These will completely cover your entire library of American cooking. Nothing else needed until you get region-specific. When you do, go for something like this.
   
   
4. Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan. When she died, the NYT ran a second obituary that was just her recipe for bolognese.
   
   
5. Christ, top five. Who gets 5th? I'm going with From Curries To Kebabs by Madhur Jaffrey. Don't get bamboozled into buying "Madhur Jaffrey's Curry Bible" which is the same book, repackaged and priced higher. You want the one with the hot pink dust jacket, it's unmistakeable. This is one of those end-all books that you could cook out of for the rest of your life. It covers almost every diet and almost every country that Beard and Bocuse don't.
   
   
6. Honorable mentions: Here come the downvotes. Pok Pok by Andy Ricker. If you're American and you want to cook Thai, this is the one. Ten Speed Press can go home now. The Book of Jewish Food by Claudia Rosen (so close to making the list). I shouldn't need to say much about this; it's the book of diasporic Jewish food, which means it covers a lot of time and almost every possible country. It's a no-brainer. Thai Food by David Thompson (a perfect oral history of Thai food for English speakers, only it doesn't include Pok Pok's precise measurements, which in practice I've found important). Flour Water Salt Yeast by Ken Forkish. Not for someone who just wants to become a baker, this book is for someone who wants to make Ken Forkish's bread. And for a casual bread baker I can't imagine a better introduction. Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table by Mai Pham. Andrea Nguyen is out there and Andrea Nguyen is awesome, but I really like Mai Pham's book. It's accessible, reliable and regional. You don't get the dissertation-level breakdown on the origins of chicken pho that you get from Andrea, but the recipe's there, among many others, and it's fucking outstanding. Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. This vegan cookbook is dope as hell and will really expand your imagination when it comes to vegetables. This could actually have been number five.

Reposting my comment from the last time this came up:

I'll second the recommendation for starting out with a Weber Kettle 22" for a first smoker if you're looking to get started smoking. It's the most versatile outdoor cooker you'll find for a reasonable price and it won't fall apart on you even if you abuse it, unlike others. Also, parts and accessories are far, FAR easier to find for it than any other cooker.

You can fit a full brisket or a full rack of ribs (or two) on it as long as you're careful and you rotate at least once during cooking. It has enough space to feed family and friends. You'll only need a larger smoker if you're regularly cooking for large groups of people (10 or more).

Pellet smokers are very convenient, but they aren't as versatile as charcoal smokers/grills. Maintaining high temps for searing, for example, can be difficult to impossible, depending on the unit. And with an automatic temperature controller, charcoal smoking can be made pretty darned hassle-free as they (if set up and used correctly) can virtually eliminate the need to adjust your vents.

If you maintain a low temperature like 225, you can get 6-8 hours out of the initial load of coal you place in the unit at the start of cooking. To give you an idea of the difference: this amounts to about a 1/4 to 1/3 of a large bag of Kingsford blue on my 22" Kettle.

Here's the exact setup I would suggest for starting out for your first few years of learning this craft:

Weber 22 inch Original Kettle - $99

Hinged, Heavy-Duty Cooking Grate (Hinges are crucial for adding charcoal in the middle of a cook and this will last quite a bit longer than the grate that comes with the vanilla Original) - $20

Slow 'N Sear smoking kit (Not 100% necessary but does make the heat way less direct, which is a very good thing when smoking)) - $90

IQ110 Automatic Temperature Regulator (Also not 100% necessary, but almost eliminates the need to tend your vents when smoking) - $140

Thermoworks Smoke (do NOT cheap out on your thermometer! Get something cheaper and you will just wind up constantly replacing probes due to them reporting false temps. You have been warned!) - $100

With this setup, you can turn out BBQ every bit as good as you can on anything short of a full-on log-burning offset smoker with just a little bit of practice, and you won't have to "baby" it. You just dump more charcoal in every 7-9 hours (depending on desired temps, wind, and leakage).

And if you decide to go with a WSM or other charcoal smoker down the road, the temperature regulator can be moved over and will work just as well with it.

Even though I have had a number of dedicated smokers, I find myself still using my Kettle quite a bit when I'm just cooking for myself, my immediate family, and/or one or two friends. It's just more efficient and less of a hassle.

For smoking, generally, my suggestion would be to either start in on your rib technique; maybe split two racks of ribs in half for a total of four pieces and experiment with leaving each one on for a different amount of time to see where you fall on the tenderness=done spectrum. I like mine so tender they almost fall off the bone, but can still hold up to a knife when slicing them. Others prefer them less tender; almost like biting into a steak. To each their own.

Or you can move on to your hot and fast technique with some chicken quarters (which are more forgiving and tastier when smoked than breasts). I generally recommend 300-325 for 1.5-2 hours. Since most folks' palates are so used to the flavor of chicken and it's a relatively mild meat, this is where you can really get a taste for the differences between woods. Always, always err on the side of adding less wood than you would think. 1-2oz on a charcoal smoker is plenty.

Save brisket for when you've got everything dialed in. It can be the most difficult to get right and has gotten to be one of the more expensive pieces of meat to smoke. Even where it's cheap you're usually looking at $40-50 per full (prime) brisket at the lowest.

The most useful thing to get a feel for is how to stabilize the temp of your smoker; make small changes to the position of your vents each time and have the patience to actually give it time for those adjustments to have an effect. Get a feel for what to do when you get a temperature spike from too much charcoal lighting off at once, for example. Will closing off the bottom vents be enough or do you need to choke it off with the top vent, as well (avoid if possible but use if necessary)? Stuff like that.

As always, a good set of temperature probes and thermometers is invaluable here!

Running CoS myself and I had the same problem. My players were becoming restless because they were playing too cautiously. They took a long time to come to any decision, but they felt they had to play cautiously and think about the situation from every angle.

My solution was to buy some game timers. I just bust one out when I think they're taking too long, and they get the message. The players really appreciate it, and I think the game has improved measurably for everyone involved.

I also play with a variant Inspiration ruleset, with Inspiration Cards rather then points. Players can carry up to their proficiency bonus number of cards.

I introduced a new rule that players set their own goals and quests. They get inspiration for setting a goal and for completing it. This encourages the players to take more risks and generally be less conservative.

These two changes have dramatically improved the game for both me and my players. Highly recommended!

If you'd use a tortilla press, then you'll probably get a lot of use out of a citrus squeezer. I feel like the lever kind gets you the most juice, and the orange ones do lemon and limes just as well.

Microplane -- great for citrus zests, spices, ginger and garlic. I like to have one with slightly bigger holes for cheese as well --- the microplane makes really fine, fluffy cheese that basically disappears when it melts, and sometimes that's not what you want.

Seconding a cast iron skillet --- great for so many things, searing steak, frying chicken, bacon, stews.

Tongs --- tongs, a spatula and a wooden spoon and you can basically cook anything

Fine mesh strainer --- can use for pasta or whatnot, but it's also great for things like gravy or pan sauces where you want plup to get through but no chunks of stuff

probe thermometer --- super handy for meats.

Nice to have: Coffee grinder. Awesome for spices --- you can buy whole spices, which keep their flavor much longer and are way cheaper. The difference between, say, cumin from a jar and cumin seeds you toast and grind fresh --- it's ridiculous. Mortar and pestle, same deal --- there's some kinds of sauces, like mole or Thai curries, that you get much better flavor when you use a mortar and pestle. You can usually get them pretty cheap at Asian or Latin American groceries.

Here are some of my favorite tools:

• Mini measuring cups/beakers - I love these! No more spilled/wasted vanilla extract.
  
• Instant-read thermometer - I use this to check on the temperature of my dough/ingredients and even to confirm things are done baking.
  
• Maybe you already have these, but if not, I use my kitchen scale and oven thermometer all the time.
  
• Bakeware rack - This keeps my baking sheets and smaller pans better organized and more easily accessible than just stacking them on top of each other.
  
• Marble slab - keeps pie/pastry dough cold as you roll it out (I keep mine in the fridge so it's always ready).
  
• Pastry strips for making sure pie (or rolled-out cookie) dough is rolled out to an even thickness. Pastry cloth/sleeve for keeping dough from sticking.
  
• Cookie scoops - for drop cookies, muffins, cupcakes, and really anything that needs to be portioned out evenly (including non-baking stuff like meatballs). Whenever I use these, I'm always really grateful for them. Mine are Zeroll dishers I got from King Arthur Flour, but Webstaurant Store has them for cheaper, and Oxo has a line of cookie scoops too.
  
• If you make layer cakes, you may already have a turntable, but if not, this one is really good. I also like this cake lifter.
  
• Of course, there's also stand mixers. Super-helpful for things like whipping egg whites for meringues/souffles/angel food cake, creaming butter and sugar, and kneading bread dough. If you ask for a stand mixer, the KitchenAid Pro has a stronger motor than the Artisan. I have the Artisan, and it's worked fine for me for several years, but if I could go back, I'd go with the Pro instead. An extra bowl is very handy as well.

I don't know if they would be needs because if it's something I need, I end up buying it for myself. These are things that would greatly improve the quality of my life, but I have a hard time justifying to myself that I deserve nice things:

• The Fred and Friends Dish Wish Scrub Brush - I live with housemates who hardly ever do dishes. I don't want to become the person who does all the dishes (even though I don't hate doing dishes). With this brush, though, I'd be much happier doing them!
  
  
• The Datexx The Miracle Cube Timer - Timers help me keep myself on task -- and something like this that would keep me productive (which is actually one of the things that help ease my depression).
  
  
• The Accell D080B-007K-R PowerSquid Outlet Multiplier - I live in a converted living room, so we don't have a lot of outlets. :(
  
  

I usually do my spatchcock chicken direct on the grill. But I do have a raised grate. I made mine by welding up a ring to some legs, but this place has them. You can see in the naked whiz spatchcock recipe he uses fire bricks to raise the grill. Raising the grate makes it easier to do everything and doesn't reduce the heat. I only cook steaks at the lower level when I want a good sear.

Some good first cooks-
Pork butt (shoulder) should be your first smoke. Its hard to screw up.
My Recipe-
-Slather pork butt with yellow mustard
-Rub with your favorite. I use 1 part bad byrons butt rub to 4 parts brown sugar
-Egg at 225-250 platesetter legs up with drip pan
-Butt goes on the grill. Between 1.5 - 2 hours per pound
-Remove when internal temp is 195
-Cool and pull apart for sandwiches

Atomic Buffalo Turds (ABT)
Great party snacks
-Cut the top off 20-25 jalapenos and core them
-Crumble and Cook up some chorizo sausage (should be like ground beef). Optionally use bacon or other sausage
-Mix sausage with 1 bar cream cheese
-Stuff peppers with cream cheese mix
-Wrap each one with a piece of bacon. Use toothpick to secure
-Use your favorite BBQ rub on the outside
-Put on egg, direct 350 until bacon is crispy

When you can get the temp up, crank that baby to 600+ and sear some nice ribeyes.

Go get a Maverick Thermometer and a Thermapen

Good luck to you, but frankly I think you're trying to create a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. Here's how I already solve all these issues:

1. When I use a bulk item and I notice it's getting low, I write it on my magnetic laminated shopping list that lives on the fridge with a dry erase maker. I add the list to my groceries app before I go shopping. Total cost, $1.50.
   
   
2. Food going bad for temperature control reasons is extremely rare. Almost to the point of being not worth spending anything to prevent it. But I'll bite. I bought $500 worth of beef directly from a rancher years ago. Because if that i have a two channel battery powered fridge/freezer monitor/alarm from Amazon AcuRite 00986A2 Refrigerator/Freezer Wireless Digital Thermometer It has an audible alarm, records high\low temps and works quite well for the entire fridge and freezer. $25
   
   
3. I don't even know how I would use this. Either I would need 40 of these devices to track most of the kitchen staples I own, or it's a game of roulette that I put it on the container that I'm going to misplace next. Do people really lose things in their kitchen that often?
   
   Like I said, good luck. I hope this is a amazing success and I'm just an outlying laggard. People who want smart home everything, or people addicted to buying kitchen uni-taskers are probably going to be your core customer.
   
   All the best.
   

Something that took me WAY too long to figure out is that when cooking stuff on the stove, use lower heat than you think you need. It's hard to get things to come out right when you're using too high of a heat setting. Like grilled cheese will go from not done to burnt in no time - so use pretty low heat, then bump it up toward medium if it's really not cooking.

Also, to check if meat is done, there is nothing better than a thermometer. No need for guessing, and no chance of food poisoning! This one looks good and has good reviews. I have a similar one but not waterproof (wish mine was).


Here's a simple recipe that cooks in the oven that gives you plenty of leftovers:

Meatloaf

• 2 eggs
  
• 2 lbs ground beef
  
• 1 pkg stuffing (Stove Top or whatever) (I like the Herb kind)- 6 oz size
  
• 1 cup water
  
• 1/4 cup barbeque sauce and/or ketchup
  
• 1/4 cup barbeque sauce and/or ketchup (to put on top)
  
  Preheat oven to 375. Beat eggs in large bowl. Add meat, stuffing, water, and 1/4 cup barbeque sauce, ketchup, or a combination. You can also add onions, mushrooms, or anything else you want. Mix using your hands, then shape into a general loaf shape in a 13x9 pan. You can use any size pan that it will fit in, as long as it has sides to keep the fat/juice from spilling over the edge. Spread 1/4 cup of ketchup/bbq sauce on top. Stick it in the oven for about an hour, or until the internal temp is 160.
  
  
  
  Another simple meal is pasta, sauce, and meat. Gives tons of leftovers if you make the whole box of pasta.
  
  
• Boil (salted) water, add pasta, cook til done.
  
• Dump a jar of pasta sauce on it. Might need another jar or half a jar if you like lots of sauce. Try tomato based or alfredo or whatever else you want.
  
• Add meat. Chopped up ham or frozen meatballs that you've heated up in the microwave are both good.
  
• If you're using alfredo sauce, try adding some frozen broccoli or other vegetables that you've microwaved.
  
  
  If you're feeling slightly fancier, try Super Easy Chicken Parmesan
  
  
• Cook the pasta
  
• Add some spaghetti sauce
  
• Top with frozen breaded chicken that you've baked in the oven for the time specified on the package.
  
• Top it all off with some sliced or shredded mozzarella and some parmesan

They also mention in the article that the vacuum contributed to increased results, but I got the impression it wasn't necessary for the process to still have positive benefits. I found a $33 single beverage mini-fridge online that's powered by USB. You could remove the heat sink off of it and attach it to your own enclosure or simply modify the fridge itself. It reaches temps of 47F, all you'd need is a constant 64F-72F. So I found a $49 thermostat on Amazon that would automatically turn on and off the heat sink when the desired temp leaves its range. That would get you off to a good start. I'm assuming the reason they use the water is because the radiating effect of it circulating through the device is what's creating the vacuum? Otherwise, it seems more efficient to use something similar to the set up I mentioned above.

6.5gal plastic fermentor - $17.88 (Don't bother with glass fermentors!)

6.5gal Bottling Bucket - $18.81

Hydrometer - $12.99

3 3-piece airlocks - $5.00 - trust me, they'll break.

stopper not needed with plastic fermentor

Bottle filler - $5.09

10 ft 3/8th inch tubing - $10.99

Auto siphon - $8.76

don't need a bottle brush with plastic fermentor

144 bottle caps - $5.78

Use any pure sugar for priming - just calculate it right. I use cane sugar without issue.

Wing bottle capper - $15.48

Dial thermometer not really needed if you're slapping on an adhesive one, but definitely get this for a hot liquor tun if you're doing that.

Wine thief - $11.20

I never used a funnel or fermentor brush - you can use anything to clean but I suggest Oxyclean rinses

32oz Star San - $20.70

Adhesive Thermometer - $4.84

Total Cost: $137.52. Not ridiculous savings BUT you get 32oz of star san instead of 4oz of io-star which will last you years and sanitizer is expensive. You get a plastic fermentor instead of glass which is so much easier to clean and keep light out. Glass carboys are good for aging and aging is good for wine or special beers. Focus on simple ales that don't require it first.

The real savings come when you do all grain and make your own equipment. You can save $137 alone if you buy a big stainless steel pot and slap on a dial thermometer with a ball valve.

I do something I call 15/30. I have these cool timer blocks I set it to 30 minutes and I just play/do what I feel like, sometimes that is laying in bed feeling blah. Then when it goes off I do 15 minutes of "what I don't want to do but can't avoid." Repeat. The basic principal is reward yourself for doing what you can handle one bite at a time. It isn't a silver bullet. It doesn't make you feel like sunshine and butterflies, but at least some of the crap you have to do gets done and off your back. And that helps.

This is a good book if you are looking to explore the concept: Mini Habits (I think it is even free for prime members)

> Is there any reason why I cannot heat my wort on top of a charcoal grill? I have an electric stove top but after having read a couple of other posts complaining about not being able to get their wort hot enough I kind of worry that I will have the same problem

Most grills won't support the weight of the wort. Even if you are only starting with a partial boil extract, that's probably gonna be a good 15-20# of water (closer to 40-50# for a full boil). If you can't use your stove, your next best bet is a propane burner like the SP10, or KAB4.

> My house is usually kept at a temp range from 80 during the day to 76 at night. I realize that this is hot for the kind of beers that I will be wanting to brew (Ales). Will this affect my beer even if I keep the primary in an ice bath and attempt to keep the fermenter itself in the 60-65 range?

As long as the wort itself is the proper temperature, it will be fine. Certainly the ambient temperatures may make it harder (or easier) to maintain the fermentation temp, but the wort temp is what you are concerned about. You can get a stick-on thermometer to keep track of it.

> Is it acceptable to just dishwasher my beer bottles? I usually submerge them in soapy water overnight and after draining/rinsing, I plan to put them in my dishwasher on a sanitize cycle

Yea I know a lot of folks do this, much easier than doing it by hadn that's for sure.

Good luck!

1. Dial thermometers suck. You're going to want a real bbq thermometer eventually anyway, so prep for it. Don't put in a dial thermometer, put in a weldless bulkhead instead of your third support bolt for the upper grate. This lets you string your thermometer probes into the side of the smoker directly below the upper grate, which keeps as much of the probe lead out of the smoker as possible (less tangly and less muck on your expensive electronics). I say replace the third bolt because the more things you have sticking into the inside of your smoker, the more difficult it is to quickly put in/remove grates (that was version 1).
   
2. Unless you really need your smokey joe to do high temp grilling in addition to being a smoker base, get the Smokey Joe Gold. Then, get a pair of malleable black iron plugs and screw them in instead of adding one of the dampers. This is mostly just to seal it up - one less potential uncontrollable air ingress.
   
3. Use pressure washers on your other two upper grate support bolts (under the head, on the exterior of the smoker). These will keep the bolts from loosening, which is bad for two reasons: first, they're not stable for your grates (and hot, heavy meat is not a good thing to have fall) and second, ugly smoke goop leaks out onto the sides of the smoker. The fewer holes you poke in the side, the better! You should only need three - two support bolts and the bulkhead.
   
4. Make the charcoal basket they recommend. Just do it.
   
5. Take a length of leftover expanded metal from the charcoal basket and bend the ends down to get a bit more height. This can sit in the bottom of the smoker, arch over the coals/wood, and support your heat diffuser all below the bottom grate. Which gets you a whole extra grate for cooking things like drip beans on. For free, since you made the charcoal basket already, right?
   
6. Not nearly as critical as the above stuff, but you can buy extra hardware to create handles for your top grate, which makes it much, much easier to get that hot grate out to put something on your fancy bottom grate. Like drip beans. Drip beans are delicious.

I ran into kinda the same problem at my LFGS a year or two ago. I was the DM, and on some nights the tables would swell to 8 players, which makes life kiiinnnnda awful for everyone.

Out of combat, I always had the same 2-4 players take command of a situation; that's fine in a novel where some characters always get shuffled to the rear of the group, not so much IRL.

In combat, it's just a slog, because a single round can take 15 minutes even if the characters are lower level. And it's usually worse because half the players don't know what anything is, so we gotta baby-step them through attack and damage rolls and class features and *frustrated strangled sounds*

​

First piece of advice: Set a hard limit on how many players you'll take at your table. I and my current DM both have a limit of 7 players, although 4-6 is preferable. That might suck for anyone who comes along all new and excited, but it's just not fair to that new player and your regulars, for the reasons I stated above. I can't count how many times at the end of the night I've had to say "hey, hope you enjoyed your first night, sorry it was so crazy, that just happens with a ton of players," and then that player never shows up again. I know it's not the best way to think about it, but when you sink 1/6 of a game night into helping someone who will never show up again, that's a bunch of a lot of wasted time!

​

Second piece of advice: Employ methods to trim combat round times. Sand timers to hurry up turns are a good place to start, as well as reminders of who's on deck turn to turn; "Ciel, your turn, Rick Trollbus you're up next so start thinking about what you'd like to do." There are some other methods, though I haven't yet tried all of them.

​

Third piece of advice: Try to get a feel for how much the rotating guest/casual players do or want to contribute. Some folks are only quite until a fellow players "MB1, any thoughts?" Then again, some people do it just to get their social itch scratched, and they're fine being quiet and listening, then rolling dice when it's their turn; totally legit way to play. Don't be afraid to ask the casual players and/or your regulars to find out, because it's better to be sure than to guess and be wrong.

​

Fourth piece of advice: Generate a butt-load of characters for casual and new players. I've seen significant portions of a game night get eaten up by getting a player up to speed on the most basic mechanics of D&D player creation and class features. If you have a new guy show up, just say "here, pick from these 3-8 and we'll help you understand what these characters are all about!"

I use a dual probe thermometer.

This one actually. The grill probe is great at keeping a constant temp at the meat.

One caution: I would strongly suggest wrapping both wires in foil. I had an accident when a piece of applewood caught fire and the flames melted the meat-probe. Now I wrap both wires in a layer of heavy foil.

The receiver has a display which is great for being near the smoker, and the remote has a great range. The wires are about 3 feet long - which should be long enough to get it away from the heat somehow.

Your millage may vary, but I found the features (and price) of that unit right up my alley. Good luck with the smoke, sounds delicious.

This is the one I have while I try to figure out if I want to build one myself or buy a much nicer one. Plus I'm not sure if I want to stay in this house for a while, so I haven't done jack shit yet, lol.

Got it from Wally World for $130 (I think it's listed for $160 or so on their site, just find a coupon).

Grab some lump charcoal and some wood chunks, for pork I recommend apple or cherry, and you'll need two temp readings, one for the pit and one for the meat.

I bought one off of Amazon. similar to this one But IIRC I got it for ~$25 during their "flash sale" around Christmas time)

For recipes, google is your friend. For temps and all that, google is DEFINITELY your friend. (Or just PM me.)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0096K1ZDG/ $60

No idea what kind of knifes you need. I like this set. I avoid serrated knives as they tear the meat.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00008GKDJ/ $15
Lodge is pretty much the go to cast iron pan. It's relatively cheap, but it is a pretty simple design after all.

You have 75 bucks left in your budget, I would get this:

https://www.amazon.com/Lavatools-Javelin-Limited-Ambidextrous-Thermometer/dp/B01F59K0KA/

Resist the urge to go cheap on instant read thermometer, it was the single best thing I purchased that drastically improved nearly all the food I cooked - especially steaks.

Try adding more beans, like 75-100g range. Wear a leather glove to protect your hand, and then use something like a kabab skewer stick or wooden spoon or buy a turkey fryer thermometer to stir the beans. I don’t let the fan do the work until FC starts.

https://www.amazon.com/CDN-IRL500-Long-Stem-Thermometer/dp/B000095RBQ

This let me go from ~5 min to the longer roasts I felt worked best, ~7-12 min.

I personally use thermometers to measure both types of temperature. When I think about it, I actually use way too many thermometers than the normal person would.

• Weber-included bi-metal thermometer built into the grill lid
  
• Digital probe thermometer which can be left in the meat while it cooks
  
• Digital probe thermometer that sits right on the grill grates - this is what I mainly rely on to see grill temp
  
• Oven thermometer that sits on the grill grates which I can use to either monitor the temp of the direct heat portion of the grill, or a double-check of the temp on the indirect side to make sure I'm not getting some goofy reading from the digital probe
  
• Instant read pen thermometer to take final temp of food
  
  I really think a person needs 2 thermometers if they want to turn out good and consistent food...one to measure the grill temp and one instant read to check meat doneness.
  
  The oven thermometer I use looks like this and can be found practically everywhere. I like the thermometers that measure temp down at the cooking surface better than ones that sit on the lid because I've found there is at least a 25 degree difference from cooking surface to lid on my grill.
  
  This is the pen thermometer I use to check meat temp close to the end of cooking. It might be tricky to find Thermoworks products locally but you can find similar stuff at cooking supply stores.
  
  Those 2 types of thermometers above would do the job really well without being horribly expensive. If someone was looking at the next small step up in thermometers, this is the digital probe thermometer kit I have. It comes with the 2 digital probes to measure both grill temp and food temp. The Maverick ET732 has been one of the better purchases I've made recently.

Yes, you should do a boil test also (adjusting for altitude), but I wouldn't bother with that thermometer if you are doing anything other than extract brews -- you need a more accurate thermometer for BIAB, partial mash, or all-grain brewing.

If you are sticking with extract brewing, +/- 2-3°F is probably fine (you just need to be able to measure approx. 170°F for steeping, approx. 90°F for yeast rehydration, and your approx. pitching temperature). In fact, even an IKEA over timer digital thermometer is good enough if you are doing extract brews.

If you go digital, the platinum standard is probably the thermapen ($89-99, $69 when they have an open box sale), but honestly you can do just fine with a $14 CDN DT450X ProAccurate Quick-Read Waterproof Pocket Thermometer. A $19 Thermoworks RT600C is so close to the Thermapen in accuracy and response time that it is probably the gold standard compared to the Thermapen platinum standard.

Edit: forgot to finish the last sentence.

Not using enough salt. Salt pasta water. Rub salt into meat. Season everything appropriately, especially baked goods.

Moving meat or fish and failing to caramelize. If you're cooking a steak, sear it on each side on as high of heat as possible. Fish, cook medium high until it's done 2/3 of the way through, flip and finish the other side.

Having too much water in, or on the surface of, whatever you're cooking. Meat should be dry before browning. Vegetables should generally be as dry as possible when processing (for example you want to remove the water from potatoes before making potato pancakes, things like that)

Overcooking. Shoot for medium rare with steaks, chicken etc. What really helps is a good digital thermometer. I have this one and I think it's the best value.

Learn to balance tastes and flavors. If something has a lot of fat, try adding an acid. Always make sure there's the right amount of salt. Salt balances sweet etc...

Eddie Izzard always makes me laugh.

I hope you feel better soon.

Laugh You!

Link

I'm not OP, but I just bought a meat thermometer that goes in the oven and lets you know when your chicken is internally 165 degrees Fahrenheit by setting the temperature. You just stick it in the thickest part of the chicken. It takes out ALL the guesswork. Just cook your chicken in the oven with a little olive oil and preferred seasonings. I prefer salt, pepper, paprika, garlic salt, garlic powder (I really like garlic).

You can use it with any meats, but I prefer to eyeball my steaks. But chicken only really has one temp where it works (165) haha. This isn't the exact one I bought, but it's pretty close. You want one with a cord that will let you put it in the oven.

I use a couple of cheap oven thermometers - About $7 each off Amazon. You could also move your probe around but I like to be able to check it, but I like being able to read left and right side at the same time.

First think I would check is how far your heat shield is off of the left wall of your smoker. With the GMG DB, this is the single most important measurement. Figure this out and you will be golden. I have found the sweet spot to be around 4.75 inches from the left side wall to get equal temps. I would try that as a starting point.

My son is 7 with ADHD. He is currently on focalin XR and does therapy every other week. We have little routines in place that help him "DO THE THING". For example, to get him dressed in the morning, we've taken two pictures one in his pajamas and one completely dressed for school and they are on his wall next to his closet. Visualizing the finished product really helps him get going in the morning. When he gets dressed, he checks his outfit to his picture to make sure he has everything.

I don't know if your son negotiates like my son does but I'm convinced that my son is going to be a lawyer. We use a "magic cube" timer. When he has a task that I want him to do or need him to do, we set his timer and he has to work on it for that long (usually 5 to 15 minutes depending on the task). Then he gets a 5 minute play break. I actually use the magic cube at work also, and it helps with my ADHD tremendously.

If you ever want to bounce ideas off of me, shoot me a message.

I've got the Smokenator and a maverick wireless thermometer on my weber kettle. I love it. I can put on a whole brisket at dawn, go back to bed and set the alarm to alert me if it goes outside of my preset temp. I can easily get 4 or 5 hours at a pretty stable 250 degrees on the first load of coals. After that I usually have to reload every hour or so. It's well worth the price.

ok, mine is 1040, so your will be even better. youre going to love this, it gives you so much control. i can hit 430 degrees, enough to go into C2. i just PM'd you my email ad, send me mail. it will be easier than posting images to imgur.

You'll need to buy these:


thermometer

two of these dimmers

a plate cover

and this electrical box

also, an old extension cord that you dont mind cutting up, and electrical shrink wrap sleeves

Chest freezer is the best for something like this. Especially if you want to swap to kegs or mix both. I would recommend something like this if you go with a freezer.

Minor things aside, like how many sensors can be attached, how it's powered, what it physically looks like, etc, most Bluetooth LE wireless thermometers are all the same Chinese "iBBQ" guts. This is obvious when you look at the app they use, as it's always exactly the same minus the branding. See:

• Tenergy Solis
  
• Inkbird (different case, different probes, but same app == same guts)
  
• Whatever this thing is
  
• And another one
  
• And another one
  
• And another one
  
• seriously, I could do this all day
  
  Same guts, usually the same probes (Inkbird's probes seem higher quality, but I bet they're still compatible with everything else here), same app. These are all just different companies that hire a factory through Alibaba to build a custom shell (and oftentimes not even that, just slap their name on the same old shell), and then drop-ship them on Amazon.
  
  That said, the guts aren't bad. I've been using a Tenergy Solis for a little over a year, and though the probes lose their color quickly in the smoke (I can't tell the difference between yellow, orange, and purple), they're still reasonable accurate, easy to use, and I'm still on the same set of batteries from over a year ago. Range is also solid, as Bluetooth LE can go a pretty decent distance.

Like everyone else is saying, you don't need much to start out. A solid starters kit would include: a good 10" chef's knife (like the 10'' wusthof grand prix chef's knife emehey mentioned), a paring/utility knife ( I use these kuhn rikon ones cuz they're cheap and come with a sheath. I have one of these riding around in my pocket all shift), a serrated blade, good comfortable non-slip shoes ( I've used everything from Danskos to Crocs; I like Crocs the best), a fine-tipped digital thermometer (I like these), a honing steel, and maybe a roll to keep it all in. Also a small notebook and a supply of sharpies and ballpoint pens. I wouldn't spend more than about $300 on all this stuff.

Later on you'll want to start getting your own tools like peelers, microplane, additional knives, etc. but your kitchen will probably have this stuff available, so save the rest of that money to buy these things once you're a bit more familiar with what types of tools you prefer.

sorry, switched to laptop now so here's the page link without Pinterest

https://www.frugallivingnw.com/amazing-no-knead-bread-step-by-step-recipe/

Basic No-Knead Bread

Slightly adapted from Jim Lahey’s My Bread

Ingredients

6 cups bread flour (recommended) or all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1/2 t. instant or active-dry yeast
2 1/2 t. salt
2 2/3 c. cool water

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Add the water and stir until all the ingredients are well incorporated; the dough should be wet and sticky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest 12-18 hours on the counter at room temperature. When surface of the risen dough has darkened slightly, smells yeasty, and is dotted with bubbles, it is ready.
   
2. Lightly flour your hands and a work surface. Place dough on work surface and sprinkle with more flour. Fold the dough over on itself once or twice and, using floured fingers, tuck the dough underneath to form a rough ball.
   
3. Place a full sheet/large rectangle of parchment paper on a cotton towel and dust it with enough flour, cornmeal, or wheat bran to prevent the dough from sticking to the parchment paper as it rises; place dough seam side down on the parchment paper and dust with more flour, cornmeal, or wheat bran. Pull the corners of parchment paper around the loaf, wrapping it completely. Do the same with the towel. Let rise for about 2 hours, until it has doubled in size.
   
4. After about 1 1/2 hours, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place a 6-8 quart heavy covered pot, such as a cast-iron Dutch oven, in the oven as it heats. When the dough has fully risen, carefully remove pot from oven. Unwrap the towel and parchment paper from around the dough and slide your hand under the bottom of the dough ball; flip the dough over into pot, seam side up. Pull the parchment paper off, scraping any stuck dough into the pan. Shake pan once or twice if dough looks unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.
   
5. Cover and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and continue baking for 10-15 more minutes, until the crust is a deep chestnut brown. The internal temperature of the bread should be around 200 degrees. You can check this with a meat thermometer, if desired.
   
6. Remove the bread from the pot and let it cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

I have a nice remote wifi enabled multi probe thermopro tp20 thermometer but I never use it. I generally use a handheld thermopen and this cheap oven thermometer. Once I learned I could spray it with oven cleaner and wipe the smoke residue away it became a habit. Here is the oven thermo. I got in the habit of keeping up with grate temps because the rest is easy and the outside therms can be 50-75f off real easy.

Rubbermaid Commercial Products Stainless Steel Instant Read Oven/Grill/Smoker Monitoring Thermometer https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005KDEIZ0/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_gPyIDbEQNSDG3

Pick up a deep from thermometer like this or this.

Once you have a thermometer of your own you can use this, or any other deep cast iron pan as a deep fryer. Alton brown shows how this is done.

Of course for fried chicken, this is the traditional way.

Enjoy your new pan! If you treat it right it shall last you several lifetimes and provide you with many fine meals.

I got this one. The app is good and easy to setup, I like it a lot better than my Maverick plus it has 6 probes

Unfortunately, no. If you’re completely new to developing and haven’t yet done black and white, there’s a bit of an initial expense. I’m going to just list off everything I use for developing. It’s actually pretty compact, I’ve thrown it all in my car on impulse and developed C41 at friends’ houses a few times. I store it all in a small cooler which I also fill with water while developing. Since the developer needs to be 102°F with moderated precision for the duration of the developing time, it helps to have a larger body of water that won’t lose temperature as quickly. So first step for me is to fill this cooler slightly upwards of 102° to put the tank in while I’m not agitating. If you’ve got a cooler, great; if not:

---

• Cooler - $27.50 on Amazon
  
  
• Changing bag - $13.95 on Adorama
  
  
• Accordion bottle (x2) for developer and blix - $14.99 on Amazon
  
  
• Regular bottle is alright for stabilizer - $3.95 on Adorama
  
  
• Tank and reels - $31.77 on Amazon
  
  
• Funnel(s) to put chemicals back - $2.20 on Amazon — it helps to have a few to avoid the developer and blix coming into contact with each other
  
  
• Thermometer (ideally waterproof, digital is nice) $4.99 on Amazon
  
  ---
  
  I think that’s about it! You can definitely go cheaper if you look around. The one thing I wouldn’t cheap out on though is the tank/reels. I started with a really cheap stainless steel setup. My reels came pretty bent up and took ages to load, like half an hour at times. I’d often have film stick to itself. I tried C41 with it one time and got blix everywhere, plus it was leaking in the cooler underwater. Everyone says Patterson is the way to go, and I haven’t tried much else but it’s served me well.

I'm dealing with lipase for the second time now. Scalding adds a step to your pumping routine but it really does work. Get an instant read thermometer to make your life easier. You can scald on the stovetop or, even better, using a bottle warmer. With a bottle warmer you're at no risk of forgetting about it and accidentally boiling it (I speak from experience), you can just set it and forget it once you figure out how much water to use. Also, the bottle warmer is good for scalding on the go if you have to do it at work/school.

best = time + money + features you want

if all you need to do is measure temperature, you can do that very easily and reliably with any of the AcuRite wireless thermometers. Here's a random one with two sensors from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/AcuRite-00986A2-Refrigerator-Wireless-Thermometer/dp/B004QJVU78/ref=pd_sim_86_4?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=YXWRSAYM2NAPCQJWSVP8

Acurite has lots of models. Amazon link above can be used to get to the list of the various models they carry. Typically we get them at the local Home Depot or Lowe's type store, but I've even seen them in grocery stores.

If you go the sensor way, you could even run weewx on a pi to aggregate your data and do graphs etc. I do that with an outside building via a pi with a DS18B20 sensor that serves up the data via nginx to a different box inside running weewx.

The ESP8266 way somebody else mentioned looks fun though.

If you absolutely have to stay under $50 then go with this..

http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Remote-Smoker-Thermometer-ET-73/dp/B0000DIU49

If you want to spend a little more get this one...

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FM8DJHQ?psc=1



I own that first one and i've never had any problems with it. It's the older model (that's why it's cheaper) but the thing has been rock solid for me. You cant go wrong with Maverick. They're commonly recommended for a reason.

Whatever you choose make sure it's a wireless one. I can sit my ass on the couch and watch the game and know exactly what's going on outside. It's great!

In-oven thermometer gets liquid in the probe and that causes it to read very wrong results, don't use it in wort. How do I know - I tried to use mine :)
The infrared is also probably influenced by evaporation and it measures the surface temps which could differ from the liquid temperatures.

Like people said Thermoworks is good.

I got myself Lavatools one and can't be happier - https://www.amazon.com/Lavatools-Javelin-Ambidextrous-Thermometer-Chipotle/dp/B01F59K0KA?ref=ast_p_ep.
It reads in several seconds, the screen flips if you flip the thermometer, there is also light in it, so it lights up when dark, it doesn't get foggy from the vapor.

I like it better than the straight thermometer because you can sanitize it and put it on it's back and keep measuring the temperature without re-sanitizing (I do it while chilling wort).

The Presto Timer is pretty durable and cheap enough to replace.

However I would quite honestly recommend something for a "fight training" situation, a large wall mount like the "Rep Timer:.

I hear Thermapen is the best thermometer. They're a little pricey though. I use this one and it's worked pretty well for me.

Obviously if you're a Q-Enthusiast you may already have most of these, but in addition to the other post:

Bear Paws

Flavor Injector

If you have a big spender looking for ideas, Automatic Temperature Regulator or any of their competitors

For the poor person looking for ideas, could give them a rub recipe you love (e.g. Meathead's Memphis Dust) and have them make it out of stuff they likely have access to in their spice cabinet already. The rub will have a limited shelf life, but useful to have and cheap for them to put together in a mason jar. Similarly, could ask for good hardwood to throw in the smoker

I felt the same way with 2 different analog meat thermometers. I decided to risk $20 and purchased a digital thermometer from amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Epica-Ultra-Fast-Digital-Meat-Thermometer/dp/B0089O0W1G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1421357270&sr=8-2&keywords=meat+thermometer&pebp=1421357270153&peasin=B0089O0W1G

After getting one of these, I noticed the ability to get more consistent reads. I was fairly certain that I was using the analog thermometers correctly, but I highly recommend a digital one. I noticed less effect from heat sources (grill) and the fast reads are simply easier and more convenient.

There are probably ways to do it yourself. I am actually an engineer, but was too lazy to figure it out.

The only real thing you need is a way to override the thermostat because the average mini fridge will not go up to 55 deg F. I got my mini fridge from a friend in return for the promise of cheese, but I did buy a fridge override. You can probably get them cheaper somewhere, but I don't know where. The thermostat and humidistat I got was pretty cheap at menards; also, possibly cheaper elsewhere.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LKRHW3E/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have this one. It's great. $10 and reads temps within 10 seconds. Totally saves you from over/under cooking meat, and it fits in an apron pocket perfectly.

> Sure, so basically lots of salt + pepper on the piggie.

Always a good idea! I would do that 12-24 hours in advance to give the salt time to penetrate the meat.

> Then, on a roasting tray, fry some fennelonions and garlic.

I like that flavor profile.

> Add the piggie (skin side up as it is chopped in half) to seer the bottom, then add white wine all around it and into the oven at 180 ºF for 3-4 hours.

That's a braise, not a slow roast. You should get one of those probe thermometers that you put the probe in the meat and the cord goes out of the oven to a temperature indicator like this:

https://www.amazon.com/ThermoPro-TP-17-Digital-Backlight-Thermometer/dp/B07477NMF4


> I can maybe use the broiler at the end to give the skin some color.

You can bring the pig out at about 160F and let it rest tented in foil, I would give it a minimum of 30 minutes, but an hour would be better. Then crank the heat as high as it will go in the oven on bake/roast, not broil, and put the pig back in to sear it.

https://www.seriouseats.com/2011/12/the-food-lab-how-to-roast-a-whole-suckling-pig.html

Meat thermometer is the one of the most useful kitchen tools you can buy. Even with a good bit of experience it is very difficult to judge proper doneness. It will drastically improve you meat cooking ability quickly.

This one is only $9 on amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01LKRHW3E/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1521824020&sr=1-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&dpPl=1&dpID=41xjG9bAtBL&ref=plSrch

And if that's too expensive this one is only $4.50 from Walmart: https://www.walmart.com/ip/ThermoPro-TP02S-5-Second-Instant-Read-Digital-Food-Meat-Cooking-Thermometer-with-Probe-for-Kitchen-Grill-Oven-BBQ-and-Smoker-Stainless-Steel-Finish/107434248

Since it's summer I think this will come in handy :p

You should also go for this cause you now have me worried that you will get food poisoning.

And (yeah I started a sentence with 'and', so what) lastly you should get this because it is so good that I can't even find the words to begin to describe it other than I've watched 4 times since getting it two weeks ago.

As for me, I would love this as drawing is my new hobby and this book was recommended to me as being good for beginners.

Thanks for the contest. woop-di-woop

Edit - misspelling of raffle phrase. Also well done on the new job.

> Some sort of grilled dish

As a person who spends a lot of time grilling / BBQing, I really endorse this.

Basically, if you have your temps correct (grill temp, and final meat temps for doneness) - you really are well on your way to making many dishes...because grilling can be applied to many different types of meats and veggies.

Best investment ever: this 17 buck food thermometer

good tip on the door, thank you. i'll keep an eye on it and start dreaming up fixes.

wrt the eel, im an hour from the DC fish market. nofear.

im looking at a slightly cheaper model of thermometer, that appears to do everything i need it to. reviews arent unpleasant, its on sale. the smoker is going to be, directonally, about 30 feet from my computer, so im not too worried about range on the wireless ohshitometer. is there specific places i should place the probes? top of the smoker? bottom? between the meat? IN the meat?

I don't know much about gas smokers other than this one, so if it's a gas smoker you want, I can't help.

However, if you are looking for a general recommendation, I would go with a WSM. It's what replaced my gas smoker, and I have been happy with it over the last 4 years since I got it. To make things easier so that the smoker doesn't have to have a babysitter, I also got a temperature regulator which allows overnight briskets as well as sleep.

The price is a bit steep for each of these, but it has been well worth it because of the end product.

I did the same with an ADKY 21 bottle. I keep Rubbermaid brilliance with 65% boveda packs and digital hygrometers on each shelf. Because the unit stayed at 65°F I tossed in a Refrigerator Temperature controller ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000EXROSE/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_fNuGzb5KNGPY6 )set at 70°F that turns the whole unit on/off to maintain 70°/65%. It's been great.

As someone else said, it depends on what one you get. My friend's is nice, mine not so much. It's still good for the price, but the toilet has some issues, there are hardly any lights, and this one time there was a mouse. I called fms and they sent some guy over two weeks later and all he did was set up a couple of traps. I've seen the mouse once or twice since then. Also, I may recommend an oven thermometer (http://www.amazon.com/POT750X-High-Heat-Oven-Thermometer/dp/B0021AEAIK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407766362&sr=8-1&keywords=accurate+oven+thermometer) because my oven temperature is like 50 degrees high. It's not that bad of an apartment though, just don't expect something like park point or uc. Oh, and I can't seem to stick things to the walls, they always fall off. Kinda strange.

I bought this guy:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07477NMF4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It works great but the clip is more made for a grill rather than the side of a pot. I figured out a way to hang it off my kitchen cabinet for cheese making and the cord on the probe is plenty long enough.

I also have to say that it is fabulous for smoking a brisket, if you want something that serves more than one purpose and are into that kind of thing.

> I can do this with an SCR, but my local hobby store has stopped carrying them. Any help is appreciated

Get one from somewhere else? Digi-key has damn near everything, and if you are willing to wait, still offers free shipping on orders received by SnailMail.

Lighting the LED is easy. Detecting the end of the kitchen timer's countdown is a pain, especially since you haven't described it in any way whatsoever.

Is it an hourglass-style egg timer? A standard mechanical timer? Something electronic and battery-powered? Built into your microwave?

You need the Javelin Pro, it's great and very responsive. It's a non-sale price of $50 for a thermometer that has magnets built in, waterproof so it's not the end of the world if you drop it in the mash and backlit display for easier reading.

This is pretty much what you'd want: http://www.amazon.com/Fermometer-FMT_FERMOMETER-Adhesive-Strip-Thermometer/dp/B004B4TS1S

Tape it to the fermenter. Read temp. Success!

#1. Happy Cake Day!

#3. Book

#4. Eating Utensil

#5. Animal

#6. Purple

#7. A Game..all about the poker

#8. A Guilty Pleasure...I hate that I love her

#9. A Tool

#10. Something from my childhood...oh man is it

#11. An organizational item...a stretch but what/who's more organized than ants?!

#12. Hobby

#13. Nerdy/Geeky

#14. Something Natural

#15. Green

#16. Something I wear

#17. Funny

#19. Gardening

#20

Bonus

Thanks for this fun Contest!

I do have a hydrometer. Is it worth having a refractometor?

Is something like this good enough?
http://www.amazon.com/DT450X-ProAccurate-Quick-Read-Waterproof-Thermometer/dp/B0021AEAB2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1407157400&sr=8-2&keywords=cdn+thermometer&dpPl=1

I have heard good things about beersmith. It is on the list.

Do you do kits or your own recipes now? I was thinking about doing a kit or two just to get the process down.

https://www.amazon.com/Sand-Timer-Colorful-Sandglass-Hourglass/dp/B014XXP12G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1479483425&sr=8-1&keywords=SAND+TIMERS

Some players hate it, but most players LOVE IT! Especially fighters/barbarians

I had an extra fridge in my garage that I have converted to a curing chamber. Here's what you need:

An external temperature controller/thermostat

An external humidity controller

A cool-mist/ultrasonic humidifier

A thermo-hygrometer (weather station)

A fan

You can find these all very easily on Amazon.
Here's what I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Refrigerator-Freezer-Thermostat-Temperature-Controller/dp/B000EXROSE/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

http://www.amazon.com/C-A-P-HUM1-Humidity-Controller/dp/B004CMOFBC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1359246682&sr=8-1&keywords=humidity+controller

The humidifier, thermo-hygrometer, and fan I bought at Walmart for under $100.

I have a different redi chek and the range is huge I think it is like 100m (300ft), way more than I ever need. I have the smoker on the back deck and keep the receiver with me in the basement on the other side of the house and rarely lose signal

This is what I have (I only paid $60 for mine)

But it looks like there is a new version out HERE

I mean, something like this doesn't seem so complex. Latches are great, but sometimes they can be the thing that keeps the door open, and they don't alert you to things like a blown circuit breaker or GFCI.

Which reminds me - we just got a deep freezer and have been meaning to pick up an alarm. Thanks for reminding me!

Cooker: Kingsford Barrel Grill (Not technically a smoker, but I've learned to BBQ on anything).

Time: 3 1/2 hours for whole chicken and 2 hours for wings.

Temp: 250F

Wood: Hickory

Equipment: Tenergy Solis Digital Meat Thermometer w/6 probes. This was my first time using it after I bought it and I was very impressed. Used 1 probe to read cooking chamber temp and one for the whole chicken. Worth the $54 and uses a Bluetooth app.

Link to thermometer: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077821Z4C?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

The following products also look good/interesting to help me. I have absolutely no financial interest in these, I'm just keeping track.

A cube for quick 5, 15, 30, 60 minute timer (link).

A popular digital kitchen timer (link).

A pager-like alarm/countdown (link).

Right, because they tried hiding m and realized that the entire internet does not work in their narrow view. Proving yet again the whole change is a half baked and was even more half assed in implementation.

I'm on the latest Windows 10 chrome release. Literally just updated to check. They do not hide the protocol so your example is wrong, and it's still very little difference made by only removing the www. If your going to do it go full bore like Safari on my Mac and just show the domain. Don't bother with anything else because the user "probably doesn't care". Simply stripping three characters is so insignificant and doesn't provide any real benefit to the user or the UI but has already proven to introduce unnecessary bugs.

Ehh, what the URL represents is not the deciding factor of atrociously long. It's the fact that it is made up of a large amount of characters.

It's not a step towards shorter URL's. They can't stop what comes after the domain, there will always be a lot of junk in URL's because it's critical to routing to the correct resources and passing whatever other input needs to be passed. Below is a random product page I clicked on my Amazon home page. I'm soo glad they are going to hide and try to make www a reserved sub-domain. It'll do wonders to shorten this URL and make things easier to look at. Heck once they hide the www that means I'll finally be able to see the letter "KX0" that was being cutoff. Hot damn, browsing the web has become a better place now.

https://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-Commercial-FGTHO550-Monitoring-Thermometer/dp/B005KDEIZ0/ref=br_msw_pdt-3?_encoding=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=RD6DV55XYT67Z7GTSARZ&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1507acd0-824d-41b3-b05c-3b288136f12d&pf_rd_i=desktop



If it's as universal as you say, why does it need to be removed. People already understand it, they work with it. Removing it can't provide any real benefit other than to obfuscate things which is never a good idea.

It's a controversy because of the assumptions that were made by the developers and the fact that those assumptions are wrong. If they just stated that they want to make things pretty so we are hiding letters, people would have said your a bunch of idiots and we hate your UI people. But they have double downed similarly to you that hiding the letters provides a ton of benefits to the end user when in fact all it literally does is allow 3 more characters at the end of the URL to be displayed. Three characters that the user probably cares less about than they do the www sub-domain.

After a year of thinking about it I finally decided to get an in oven meat thermometer and I don't regret the purchase! Last night I tested it out by cooking a few ribeyes that I picked up on sale last week, used the reverse sear method, and I finally got a perfect med. rare steak at home!!!

Stopping the cooking process at or around the minimum safe to consume temp will probably help you appreciate your food more.
Get an oven probe thermometer like this and an instant read thermometer like this and bake some chicken thighs or breasts that you remove right at 165 or even a couple degrees lower. They will be delicious with only some oil salt and pepper but add whatever you like. Easy as hell and can be used in all sorts of things.

I used the pomodori method and enjoyed it better than straight study marathons.

For a timer, I used this cube timer. Or I'd recommend any kind of handheld kitchen timer.

Using your phone as a timer can be a distraction when you get tempted to open notifications and suddenly you're on a tangent. Plus the cube timer is easy to flip over and continue on or reset. It's a little loud for a library but personal use is fine.

First, what type of coconut oil are you using? Pure coconut oil (completely virgin, no additives) has a really slow smoke point, 350 degrees fahrenheit(Wiki article on various smoke points). You could very likely be getting the oil too hot. I'd recommend getting a thermometer like this to safely measure the fryer temp.

I use two different ones when i am smoking meat.

Maverick Remote Thermometer to measure the temperature at the cooking grate level. It also has a probe you can leave in your meat (or whatever you are smoking) to give you an idea of what its temp is at any moment. Is wireless so that i don't have to be right beside the smoking chamber to check on my cooking process. i've had it for a number of years and it has worked well for me.

I also use a Digital Thermometer so that i can probe the item being smoked in order to get fast readings in multiple locations to ensure i've gotten to the desired temp. This one registers temps accurately in about 4-5 seconds, which is fast enough for me.

perhaps for building up confidence, bust out the digital meat thermometer. at an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, you're basically good to go.

You'll love it!

The Kettle makes it pretty straight forward. One other thing, if you don't have something like this already, is a dual probe thermometer: TP 17

There are obviously higher end versions of this style of thermometer but I've used that exact model for about a year and a half on my Kettle without issues. Put one probe in the meat and the other low on the grate level. It'll help give you an accurate view of the temperature inside the grill and the meat.

I picked up one of these on an Amazon special for about $30. It has 6 probes and I use one for ambient grill temp on my Kamado.

Tenergy Solis Digital Meat Thermometer, APP Controlled Wireless Bluetooth Smart BBQ Thermometer w/ 6 Stainless Steel Probes, Large LCD Display, Carrying Case, Cooking Thermometer for Grill & Smoker
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077821Z4C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_lmyYDbFXHJQYF

Keep watching other sites as we approach Black Friday - there's bound to be sales...

I ended up getting this and my buddy got this one which he's says is also good. But don't take my word for, see what else reddit likes.

If you like it medium well, I'd dial the heat down from medium-high (75% strength) to medium (half strength). and once you get the sear on each side, just keep flipping so both sides cook equally. Also, use a thermometer, especially if you're still learning consistency. I use this one. The more you use a thermometer, you'll eventually get to a point where you don't need to rely on a thermometer anymore (though I use mine every now and then as a security blanket)

This was in between medium and medium rare.

caps though many extract kits come with them,
bottles (I'd reccomend asking your drinking friends to stockpile the snap top styles for you) cheaper than buying new ones,
as a cheap quality of life buy a fermometer,
you'll also want to pick up some cleaner (B-Brite or other equivalent),
the wort chiller seems really high priced even without shipping try checking around your local hardware shop you can probably make one yourself for cheaper,
as someone else mentioned a hydrometer and get a cheap turkey baster to use for transferring wort to measure (dollar store item)

This thermometer has served me well for some time. I use it to check my water temperature before mixing dough as well as checking the temperature of the dough to make sure it's in the range I want.

I need this because I have an awful oven that doesn't like to cook things properly. Alternatively this because my laptop's fan needs a clean

Both are also cheap so you can gift someone else!

C'mon...gimme. Thanks for the contest <3

Get one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/Datexx-The-Miracle-Cube-Timer/dp/B0002U72LS

30 minutes of work, 30 of fun, repeat. Obey it without question.

Then once you have some normal pattern of work vs leisure, expand the work to 60.

also - ovens cycle to maintain the temp - get an oven thermometer that hangs on a rack to get better accurate temp readings. Just cause your knob says 325 doesn't mean the oven IS 325 all over or at all - it could be way off or tell you you need a new oven. a thermometer can also help you map out the hot/cold spots.

I love my Lavatools Javelin Pro Duo.

https://www.amazon.com/Lavatools-Javelin-Ambidextrous-Thermometer-Chipotle/dp/B01F59K0KA/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1543507488&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=lavatools+javelin&psc=1

Thanks! Here you go!

Vario 886 Grinder

Pocket scale

Distributor

Dosing Funnel

Espro calibrated tamper VST 58.35 Flat

Grindenstein Knock box

Presto timer

18g VST portafilter basket

IMS E61 shower screen

E61 thermometer

alton brown had the best answer: http://www.amazon.com/IQ110-Temperature-Regulator-Standard-Adapter/dp/B00A7F1B60/

Plenty of people have commented on the need for a meat/probe thermometer but I think it's also worth mentioning that an oven thermometer is a crucial tool as well. Kinda like this

It hangs on the rack and gives you a more accurate look at what temp you're cooking things at.

Not all ovens are equal, and it doesn't always give you the temp that you specify. My oven is old as hell and tends to run quite hot, to the point where if I want to cook at 400 then I'm better off setting it closer to 350.

This is the one I use and it's great. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0021AEAIK

A great and cheaper alternative to the above mentioned thermapen is the Javelin Pro Duo. They can be had for about half the price and if you keep your eyes peeled often around $40.

Here is a link to my cellar. This set up cost me $145 and I can easily transfer the accessories to a larger fridge when I get one.

• Mini fridge - $30 (found on craigslist)
  
• Temperature controller - $61
  
• Dehumidifer - $24
  
• Fan - $10
  
• Thermometers - $10

Okay thanks a ton for this information. I was wondering if you don’t mind me asking a few questions? I always heard that it’s better to give the steak a good seasoning of kosher salt and black pepper a few days in advance? Was going to cook it on Saturday, so I was thinking seasoning it Wednesday night? Also I’m thinking of going with a bone in ribeye. Not sure if that makes any difference.


When you first place the steak with the baking sheet in the oven, the oven will be already a consistent temperature. But is the baking sheet already heated up, or do you just put it in at the normal temperature with the steak?


Also last simple question… Any meat thermometer you recommend? Bought one a while ago but never used it, and it’s now broken. Not looking for an expensive one, but one that does the job. This one looks okay? https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LKRHW3E/ref=s9_cdeal_hd_bw_b1DOM_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-2&pf_rd_r=AB4HN85KZV7BTZB9P9KJ&pf_rd_r=AB4HN85KZV7BTZB9P9KJ&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=7d3bda98-f586-40e0-854f-3a6f95abb51f&pf_rd_p=7d3bda98-f586-40e0-854f-3a6f95abb51f&pf_rd_i=289810

A timer so I don't overcook my food!

Vroom Vroom

Also Congrats!

I have one of those classic pot clip thermometers which I leave in the brew pot, and then I also have a quick-read thermometer which is excellent to get very quick, accurate readings. I use them both - the turkey fryer thermometer is not always precise enough for steeping, etc.

[edit] - obviously the other thermometers listed here with separate probes are nicer and way more accurate, but I wasn't willing to jump up to taht price range. If you are, go for those!

I highly recommend a timer. It works much better for me than a phone. Much less distracting.

Yeah just use a timer. Amazon has a set of 6 for like $10

Here's what I'm referring to
https://www.amazon.com/Temperature-Regulator-Standard-Adapter-Mountain/dp/B00A7F1B60/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1519995462&sr=8-2&keywords=temperature+control+kettle+grill

I had a friend use it. It's kinda cheating, but it's also easier, apparently.

Opening it every half hour to probe the meat will make it incredible difficult to maintain consistent heat in the kettle.
Also, if you are not constantly monitoring the pit temp, you are asking for disaster.

I recommend getting something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Remote-Smoker-Thermometer-ET-73/dp/B0000DIU49/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1415644800&sr=8-8&keywords=maverick+thermometer

Its a great price and you can watch the temp of the kettle as well as the meat from your house.

Use this.

We use these in almost every game we play once we figure out whats fair timing. We even use it in DnD for fights and stuff.

It really keeps games flowing and forces players to pay attention instead of being on their phones or whatever. It keeps people from crunching the numbers and fucking everyone else, and forces people with AP to deal with their issue. All the players we ever had with AP have basically grown because of these timers. Actually all the regulars have gotten so much better at games cus of it.

It's neat.

https://www.amazon.com/Habor-Thermometer-Instant-Digital-Temperature/dp/B01LKRHW3E/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=meat+thermometer&qid=1558649235&s=gateway&sr=8-3

​

Anyone and everyone, buy a thermometer immediately. $10 for perfectly cooked meat and never catching salmonella for the rest of your life. No brainer.

Honestly, best investment ever if you plan on cooking your own proteins!

I have this one. It's pretty quick.

https://www.amazon.com/Lavatools-Javelin-Ambidextrous-Thermometer-Chipotle/dp/B01F59K0KA/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1523561195&sr=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=javatools+javelin

save your money

Tryna make a nice Peet’s?


https://www.amazon.com/CDN-POT750X-ProcAccurate-High-Thermometer/dp/B0021AEAIK/ref=mp_s_a_1_14?keywords=pizza+oven+thermometer&qid=1574573581&sr=8-14

relax. there is no rush here. esp if you are using dried yeast it can take forever to get started. get a cheap stick on temperature strip (https://www.amazon.com/Fermometer-863043-Adhesive-Strip-Thermometer/dp/B004B4TS1S) that way you don't have to worry about contaminating the wort by your measurements. once it hits the okay range toss in the yeast. dont see activity within 3-4 days? toss in another packet of yeast. then just wait a few weeks.

> In addition to a Thermapen, I want to purchase...

Here, I saved you $80. That's the price of a mill on sale, so now you can get both.

Really, really like this one. Bluetooth with an app and 6 probes with lengthy cables, in case if you're doing a lot of different meats.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077821Z4C/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It'll happen over a few hours (which is why fermentation chambers work).
Heat will spike more in the early stages of fermentation because that's when most of the work is being done.
Typical assumption is that the beer is about 2-4*F above ambient temp.
Get yourself a simple Liquid Crystal Termometer to put on the side of your fermenter, it'll give you a better idea of the temps inside (but still not 100% accurate)

And you don’t have to go crazy on a thermometer. I’ve had this for about a decade and it’s worked perfectly. Replaced the battery once so far. It’s the same ones all of the chefs use at my companies cafeteria.

And if you're not sure and don't want to drop $70+ on a nice one, there are cheaper options like this out there.

I've had this little one for almost two years now, and it gets the job done. It doesn't have any special features, you can't keep it in the meat while it is in the oven or grill, it doesn't read the temperature instantly, but it gets the job done and my steaks come out how I want them.

I have a few smokers (the low and slow kind) and I monitor the temps with a Weber Wireless Outdoor Cooking Thermometer. When it dies I am going to get one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Remote-Smoker-Thermometer-ET-73/dp/B0000DIU49

Two probes and a 100 foot range on the Maverick. All you need. You should be able to establish when to add smoking wood by the temps. After the meat reaches approx. 140F little smoke flavor is absorbed from what I have been able to read on the many BBQ forums. YMMV of course...

Remote telemetry of the temps is far more reliable indicator of how the smoker is behaving for me. Windy days, cold days all affect my smokers temp.

Have fun!

For what it's worth you can't go wrong with anything from Thermoworks and if you're worried about fakes you can just buy from them directly. Thermopen, Thermopop, ChefAlarm... all great products.

Another option is this Comark which I used for several years before upgrading to a Thermapen. When I worked in the food service industry this is what we all had.

Would something like this be suitable?

Generally they are referred to as timers rather than stopwatches.

For checking the temp of the machine water, Get a durable quick read digital, like CDN.

So incredibly worth it. My oven was way off.

https://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-Commercial-FGTHO550-Monitoring-Thermometer/dp/B005KDEIZ0/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1550677722&sr=8-3&keywords=rubbermaid+thermometer

I am not sure of what you already have or what you would need, I am listing a few things on top of my head:

• Crock pot
  
• Cast iron skillet
  
• Dutch oven
  
• Victorinox chef knife
  
• Microplane zester
  
• Bread maker machine
  
• Mandoline
  
• Mortar and pestle
  
• Flour Water Salt Yeast: The Fundamentals of Artisan Bread and Pizza
  
• Tartine bread
  
• Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
  
• Espresso maker
  
• Cookie Sheet and cooling racks
  
• Meat Thermometer

Something like this?

Just one cheap example I found. Looking into fridge/freezer thermometers should give you options. Just check the specs to make sure the listed temperature range works for you.

Edit: Didn't read clearly. Not wireless. I found this one instead, which does display 2 temps, but both are remote sensors. Maybe a backyard temp and a greenhouse temp, keep her focus off the indoor temp altogether.

Have you ever seen a lcd thermometer on the side of a fish tank?

http://www.amazon.com/Fermometer-FMT_FERMOMETER-Adhesive-Strip-Thermometer/dp/B004B4TS1S

the ring has the same material under a plastic "gem", as you wear it, the heat from your fingers warms it and it changes color

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mood_ring

Is it extra expensive to ship via amazon? If not I would grab this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01F59K0KA?psc=1

I was looking at this myself http://amzn.to/2ukXDzh but haven't bought it yet. Traveling a lot means getting Amazon is a bit tricky..

Sure, though that would seem to require leaving your computer outside next to the grill? I have one of these which means I can keep the receiver end inside, but you're right it requires OCR. I really need a custom receiver that connects via USB. I'm not much of a hardware person though, so I don't know how hard that would be to make, or if such a thing exists.

Thermometer

Universal Knob Replacement

You really only need the first one and a sharpy.

I don't really think 350F is all that important, 250F-400F will probably get you there, just stir it frequently until it is dry.

I got mine on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Temperature-Regulator-Standard-Adapter-Mountain/dp/B00A7F1B60/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=iq+110&qid=1556438728&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Hopefully others will chime in so there's more of a consensus, but this is what we use in our ovens at the bakery to confirm our oven thermometers are working properly. We leave them in most all the time.

https://www.amazon.com/CDN-POT750X-High-Heat-Thermometer/dp/B0021AEAIK

Want to track your fridge/freezer temps while you drive? Try using the AcuRite 00986A2 Refrigerator/Freezer Wireless Digital Thermometer, you put the sensors in the fridge/freezer and you can keep the readout in your truck while driving. Amazon has it here, but I think you can find it cheaper elsewhere for longer shipping times.

That's it. You might want to consider getting an oven thermometer.

> But I want an hourglass

You can even get them shipped to your door.

When you say it will be outside where will it be outside?

Also keep the freezer full with water jugs, once the water is frozen it will act as its own battery keeping the freezer cold. Using a freezer alarm will let you know if you are having issues with the freezer so you do not lose all the food, but you should have that for any outdoor freezer.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07477NMF4/ref=psdc_289810_t1_B017613C3C

​

Is what I use. Probe connections are long enough you can set the display on the counter to the side. Beeps when it reaches the set temperature.

An unnoticeable fridge failure seems like probably once in a lifetime occurrence. I think I would notice if my fridge inched up a few degrees because I like really cold drinks, but that's me. Anyhow, I would just keep using the regular refrigerator, and if you're worried get something like this with an alarm if it gets too warm.

http://www.amazon.com/ACU_RITE-Refrigerator-Wireless-Thermometer-00986/dp/B004QJVU78/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1381248602&sr=8-5&keywords=refrigerator+thermometer

http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Remote-Smoker-Thermometer-ET-73/dp/B0000DIU49/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1419911294&sr=8-9&keywords=maverick+thermometer

I was thinking about getting the maverick because it comes highly recommended...but which one? this one or this one?

This is the one I have my eye on: Maverick ET-73 BBQ set

It comes with both a meat probe and a pit probe. For about the price of two replacement probes.

It's a timer, it counts down to whatever side is up.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002U72LS/

I use it when I need to be productive. Flip it to 30, do 30 minutes of work, flip it to 15, do 15 minutes of games/reddit/whatever.

I use this and this

Invest in an oven thermometer.

Set or hang it in the center of the oven to get the most accurate reading.

Pick up an oven thermometer too.

Get one of these dealies.

Does your oven have a window? If so then this.

https://www.amazon.com/CDN-POT750X-High-Heat-Thermometer/dp/B0021AEAIK

Get a cheap toaster oven from any big retail store and an oven thermometer to dial in the exact temperature.

Not quite the same but the ET733 is one sale on amazon.ca for $69.99: http://www.amazon.ca/Maverick-Range-Wireless-Smoker-Thermometer/dp/B00FM8DJHQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395533783&sr=8-1&keywords=maverick+et+732

this one :) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HV5AL9G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_qahBybCN1653N

I'll go ahead and point out that for less than the price of a bag of beans you can buy a decent digital thermometer.

The one I use is $7

any digital thermometer with a tip like this one will work. Just insert the tip into the dough for a few seconds and it will register correctly.

I picked up a 6 probe digital not to long ago for $60

Seems there out of stock now but they have a 2 probe for $27

get a digital instant read thermometer, read up on temps for your proteins, never overcook anything again. http://www.amazon.com/Comark-Instrument-Digital-Thermometer-Accuracy/dp/B001U59MDA/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1421866650&sr=8-5&keywords=instant+read+thermometer+blue

in the kitchen I work in this is the standard, we all have one and swear by them.

Better grab them soon. That's the older version. (Nothing wrong with it, just pointing it out).

I just bought the [newer one] (http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-ET-733-Wireless-Smoker-Thermometer/dp/B00FM8DJHQ/ref=pd_sbs_lg_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1457FKKPAPZXSEDTKA99), last week.

Everyone needs a kitchen timer; they're cheap and practical. No more forgetting about the oven being on or something else important.
Here's the #1 seller on amazon

Purchase an oven safe digital probe thermometer. I have this one. The alarm goes off when it reaches the appropriate temp and there are guidelines written in the thermometer itself. No guesswork.

get an oven thermometer so you can somewhat verify your temperatures. cant trust the dials.

If you want to take it to the next level, use an airlock instead of a balloon and a strip thermometer. By keeping the temperature low (55F) you will get a smoother mead with less hot alcohols, but it will take longer to ferment.

Professional chef here. This is the only one I swear by (and other chefs I have known swear by):


Comark Instruments | PDT300 | Waterproof Pocket Digital Thermometer https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001U59MDA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_n0w4ybTHH2APF

There are the thermapens that are $100+, which are supposedly quite durable and nice. However, I wouldn't want something that bulky or expensive to ruin.

Got a shipment in from amazon containing a long spoon, a Fridge thermometer, and a pen thermometer. All stuff ive kinda just needed and never got yet.

Also, I have a Chocolate milk stout sitting in secondary, stuck, not hitting my desired FG. It was stuck in primary (2 weeks), so I reracked it hoping to move it along, and here we are. Not sure what to do about it next :/

OG: 1.056

Current Gravity: 1.041

Others here have given you advice on using a proper temp gauge, getting one for the smoker and one for the meat, but they forgot one. Get a beer or some liquor,relax, and have one or five drinks.

Also this is the temp probe I have Maverick Redichek . Not the best but it gets the job done.

Oven preheat sensor cannot be trusted. Preheat to 450... 15 minutes pass and beeeeeep. BARELY 400. Lies.

Get one of these.

You can try it, or just put it back in the oven at 450F for longer.

Or get an inexpensive oven thermometer and remove all doubt of what the oven is doing.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0021AEAIK

Or put the pan on the stove and heat it on high/med-high until it starts to smoke.

I had the same trouble with that same unit. I gave up and bought this

Stress is bad, and you need to find a way of managing it (anyone teaching Tai Chi near you?) but this only requires you to be able to put it aside for 30 minutes.

I use one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Datexx-The-Miracle-Cube-Timer/dp/B0002U72LS

It's silly, but it works.

Actually, here's the one I have - ET-73!

One for the probe and one for the meat! Sorry about the confusion.

Get one of these suckers for $5 and check the oven.

https://smile.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-Commercial-FGTHO550-Monitoring-Thermometer/dp/B005KDEIZ0

>making himself sick with anxiety over whether some I prepared were fully cooked (spoiler alert: they were).

I was the one who was always anxious about whether meat was fully cooked... I finally bought an instant-read meat thermometer (I previously had one of those older ones with a probe and a long cord. I never really used it because it took too long to get a reading and was awkward to use) . Now I know the precise cooking temperature. I have a note on my fridge with safe cooking temperatures for each type of meat. Nobody has gotten sick and I'm no longer stressed out about some pink in the middle of my beef or pork.

​

Edited to add: This is the thermometer that I have- https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HV5AL9G/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ... $6 is a cheap price for peace of mind.

I just bought this ThermoPro TP-04 for my fathers xmas present, it's not wireless and only has 1 probe though.

Maverick seemed to be one of the most recommended brands on /r/smoking and /r/bbq. I didn't need the wireless because my dad will sit out with the smoker and check on it a lot.

This Maverick ET-73 would have been my other choice because it has dual probes and falls within a reasonable price range (~$29-33ish atm).

I'm sorry to say that these are only recommendations and I have no experience with either of these. There were a lot of complaints about the probes failing on many of the thermometers that I looked at as well so make sure that you read some reviews!

>My suspicion is that the yeast died because it was too cold. I have 2 questions:
(1) Has anyone had an experience where the yeast died because the batch got too cold? If so, how did you know?
(2) Can someone recommend a product that can monitor/record what temperatures my carboys have experienced?
Thanks in advance!



To 1) I have not, but I've read plenty of stories of people accidentally freezing their beers during fermentation. That seems to do it, but even then there are cases where people say they have not needed to add more yeast. My guess is it would depend how long it was frozen.

If you haven't frozen your beer though, I really wouldn't worry about killing the yeast. Knocking them out for a while until temps get higher, sure.

For 2) Try something like this.

Far as your under carbonated problem. How much did you bottle, how did you calculate and measure your priming sugar?

For the "secondary" problem. If it does a full on ferment in secondary, you probably transferred too soon. The use of a secondary is generally to bulk condition/add things to it rather than actually ferment further.

Computer and phone alarms are crap. So easy to dismiss without breaking your attention properly.

You could try putting an alarm in another room, with a sticky note next to it for what you will do instead of going back to your game.

You could try having a warning alarm to start drawing you out, give you a minute or two to tie up loose ends so that you won't be compelled to go back "quickly" - and then get sucked back in!

If you want keep your alarm close by, something that requires you look at it, and is visually interesting might help a little. This I think you might even need to pick up to turn it off quickly/easily.