The $9 Gem That Made Me a Better Baker (I Recommend It to Everyone!)

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As someone who’s been a home baker for well over 10 years, I have a lot of bakeware, utensils, and accessories to help me turn out everything from cookies and cakes to muffins and breads (and everything in between). But there is one product that is truly indispensable to me — and that is my oven thermometer.

I’ve had the Taylor Large Dial Oven Thermometer since I first moved to New York City over six years ago, and I’ve never looked back. It keeps my oven honest, giving me the true temperature inside of it. I’ve learned the hard way not to trust my oven’s digital interface to correctly tell me the internal temp. So with this old-school little gadget, I can tell if my oven is actually doing what it says it’s doing. And best of all, this gadget is incredibly easy to use and won’t even cost you $10 from Amazon, making it an amazing stocking stuffer or an affordable addition to a larger gift for a home baker. 

I’m no stranger to a faulty oven — and this oven thermometer has been through three different New York City apartments with me. I trust it more than any oven I’ve ever used. Hang this analog thermometer on one of the racks in your oven (I always keep it on the lowest rack as long as the thermometer doesn’t touch the bottom of the oven), and it can tell you the actual temperature your oven between 100°F and 600°F. This is how I’ve discovered when ovens run cold or even when a pilot light was out in one oven. And frankly, I just leave it there.

Once I put it in my oven, the thermometer doesn’t come out unless I want to clean the gadget (which I only do on occasion) or I’m packing up my apartment to move to a different one. So not only is it probably the most useful baking tool I own, but it’s also the most low-maintenance one. And of course, it’s incredibly cost-effective, which makes it an amazing gift for a baker who might not already have one.  

In my current apartment, my oven runs cold — and this thermometer is how I can be sure. I will set my oven to reach 450°F. It will ding when it says it has reached that temp, and then I’ll go into my oven to check my Taylor thermometer, only to find that it’s actually 250°F or 300°F instead. You see what I mean about not being able to trust your oven every time? This is especially pertinent for renters who have whatever oven the apartment came with (and it might be pretty old by the time you get to it). 

Baking is pretty scientific, and knowing the true temperature of your oven can save you some major headaches on the way to your next great bake. Because of this handy little thermometer, I know better than to just stick a tray of cookies into my oven when it says it’s reached the appropriate temperature — because I can actually see if it has. So I know if it has gotten too hot too fast and my bake might scorch, or if the oven is too cool and therefore will take much longer to bake in. 

It might seem like a little thing (and, quite literally, it is), but this oven thermometer has been my trusty sidekick as I have baked every manner of treat over the last six years, as well as sheet pan dinners (my fave!). Sure, it might not be the cutest baking product that’s ever existed, but it has been the most helpful baking tool I’ve ever had. And at just $9, it’s truly a perfect affordable gift for your favorite baker.  

Buy: Taylor Large Dial Oven Thermometer, $8.94