This Is Ina Garten’s Secret Weapon for Cooking with Accuracy—and It’s Just $7

In light of the long-awaited release of Ina Garten’s memoir, “Be Ready When The Luck Happens,” I’ve found myself reflecting on the many lessons I’ve learned from Ina throughout the years about living, working, and of course, success in the kitchen. As I speed-read her book, I’ve been relistening to some of my favorite Ina interviews. Whenever she is asked about the kitchen tools she can’t live without, there is one daily essential she never fails to mention: her oven thermometer. She insists everyone needs one to prepare well-cooked food with accuracy and peace of mind. The best part? Her favorite oven thermometer is available at Amazon for just $7.

The Taylor Oven Thermometer

This reasonably priced thermometer is made from strong, corrosion-resistant stainless steel. It has a large, colorful 2 1/2-inch display dial with a bright red pointer so it’s easy to read, making it less tempting to crack open that oven door and release heat. After purchasing it for their “wonky” oven, one shopper said that this “dial is clearly readable through the oven door.” They even agreed with Ina, saying that “every kitchen should have one.” Able to read temperatures ranging from 100°F to 600°F, this oven thermometer can be hung on an oven rack or stand on its own, so it’s compatible with different sizes of ovens, dishes, and oven racks.

You may wonder why Ina finds this tool so essential. To put it plainly, ovens can be extremely unreliable—and even provide highly inaccurate readings. “No matter what it says on the dial, the oven itself could be totally different,” she warns in a 2020 interview with NYT Cooking. Basically, you can never be too sure what temperature your oven has reached, which can be a make-or-break factor for many recipes. But with an oven thermometer, you can rest assured you’re following your recipe accurately and cooking consistently.

One Amazon shopper wishes they’d purchased this tool months ago when they “first suspected oven sabotage.” After botching a few dishes to their oven’s inconsistent readings, they snapped up this handy oven thermometer, which is “really making me change the way I use this crummy oven.” 

After hearing Ina Garten rave so much about this must-have gadget, I bought one for myself and now keep it in my oven. When I began using it, I couldn’t believe how off-base my oven’s temperature was compared to the thermometer’s reading—sometimes, the difference was more than 50°F! It’s no wonder why some of my recipes just wouldn’t cooperate.

The Barefoot Contessa has spoken. Before you start prepping your Thanksgiving dishes and complicated holiday desserts, you’ll want to snap up this Ina-approved Taylor oven thermometer while it’s just $7 at Amazon.

Shop More Oven Thermometers at Amazon:

AcuRite Stainless Steel Oven Thermometer

KitchenAid Oven Analog Thermometer

Pecula Oven Thermometer

Defull Stainless Steel Oven Thermometer