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Sweet Treats

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How to calibrate and use your sugar thermometer

Tips for calibrating your thermometer
A sugar thermometer makes working accurately with sugar syrups much easier. Before
using your thermometer, you should test it to make sure that it is reading correctly. At sea
level, a thermometer placed in a pot of boiling water for at least five minutes should read
100 °C. At altitudes above 600m, the boiling point of water is lower: 98 °C.

When using a thermometer, it’s important that the bulb doesn’t touch the sides or bottom
of the pot as this can also cause an inaccurate reading. Make sure you check the reading at
eye level and take note of the exact temperature on your thermometer. If it is out by a few
degrees, that's fine – just remember to compensate for that when working with your sugar
syrups. If, for instance, your thermometer reads 105 °C in boiling water then you’ll need to

add an extra 5 °C to the recommended temperature. Depending on the type of
thermometer you have, you may be able to calibrate it manually using a wrench.

Tips for using your thermometer
Make sure that your thermometer is clean and free of any other sugar crystals, as this can

'contaminate' the batch that you are working with. Also, it’s a good idea to warm your
thermometer in a mug of hot water before adding it to the pot; if it is cold, it can 'shock' the
sugars and cause the mixture to seize.

Five stages of a sugar syrup

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