Is my meat thermometer off or kettle?

[nitaant]

I have a Utilitea kettle, and just purchased an OXO Instant Read Meat Thermometer for 10 bucks from Jewel.

I haven't done much cooking in my life so maybe I just don't know whats what, but either the kettle seems off or the thermometer.

At the white mark on the kettle immediately after the green, if I put the thermometer in immediately after the kettle switches off, I get a reading of about 160 )the thermometer takes about 40 seconds to give me the reading.

If I boil water in a pan, then switch it off and put the thermometer in, by the time the thermometer reaches its alleged reading, it shows about 190...

If I leave the stove on and put the thermometer in while its still boiling, then I get a reading of 212. but the minute I switch it off, within about 30 seconds, it drops down to around 190.

Does water cool this fast, or is there something wrong with my thermometer?

What it claims to be 160 in my utilitea is way too high to be 160. I have a chinese tea that scalds at over 175 or so, I brew it low, what I thought would be about 160 (putting the high green setting on the utilitea which is supposed to be 180, then after heating brewing vessels etc). If I brewed it with the water that this thermometer claims is 160, it would scald and be done with.

I brewed some Tie guan Yin with water it claimed to be 180. It didn't come out right, not the usual soft flavor profile, and too hot for me to drink (I don't drink black teas, just greens)

If I brew gyokuro with what it claims to be 140, I will for sure waste my tea.

Yet when (even the ulititea boiling at max setting with the lid open) I put the thermometer in while either the utilitea or the stove top is still boiling the already boiling water, I get a 212 reading, to lose it to about 190 within a minute, both in the ulilitea and the stove.

Whats going on?

[nonc_ron]

I tried to get a close up of the dial, this is the best I could do.
I take it the red mark is 212*
and the green mark is 180*
The temp your looking for should be to the left of the green mark.

[bongoman]

I have the same issue with my meat thermometer. It's either reading too low OR water simply cools quicker than I would have guessed.

I'm using a: Taylor meat thermometer.

It seems that when I pour straight from a hard-boiling kettle at sea level into a glass, the temperature is 80C (176F) according to my thermometer, which surprises me.

Many of the instructions for brewing Japanese greens advice pouring into a kyusu, wait for a minute, then pour into tea cups then back into the kyusu for brewing. If I follow this procedure, my thermometer shows the water at below 70C (158F) which is even too low for most greens I understand.

So I'm guessing that either my meat thermometer is not well calibrated OR there's something about this type of thermometer is not well suited to measuring water temperature.

[olivierco]

I
If I leave the stove on and put the thermometer in while its still boiling, then I get a reading of 212. but the minute I switch it off, within about 30 seconds, it drops down to around 190.

Does water cool this fast, or is there something wrong with my thermometer?

Water doesn't cool this fast.

[nitaant]

Ok I am just clueless now..

I ordered a tea thermometer from Upton Teas.

That one is also showing two notches above the green zone as just 150 F. This is impossible.

What in the world is going on, and how am I ever supposed to figure out the correct temperature?

[Chip]

Digital electronic thermometers are the best way. But some are faster than others. The newest generation of Taylor and Polanor work very well and are super fast.

[Oolonga]

Ok I am just clueless now..

I ordered a tea thermometer from Upton Teas.

That one is also showing two notches above the green zone as just 150 F. This is impossible.

What in the world is going on, and how am I ever supposed to figure out the correct temperature?

I had the same issue as you do with water cooling off too quickly after being poured into a pot. I bought 2 thermometers (one of them was digital) and they showed exactly the same. Then I figured that when brewing tea all I need to know is the temperature of the water that I'm pouring directly on my tea and cooling off is a natural part of a steeping process. So now I just heat water to the desired temperature that is the temperature in the kettle and don't bother measuring it in a pot after that.
Hope it makes sense...