This is it, the MeatStick review you have been waiting for! Dad loves cooking and a big part of cooking well is knowing what temperature your food is at. Having an easy and reliable way to keep track of the temps on your food is paramount to have good outcomes so the fine people over at The MeatStick sent Dad one of their Range Xtender wireless meat thermometer sets to give a shot.
The MeatStick is a wireless meat thermometer and is truly wireless unlike the one Dad has been using.
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The meat thermometer Dad currently has is "wireless" by the fact that there is a receiver you use to get the readings from the probes. However, there are still wires that run from the probes to a transmitter.
While it works those wires are slightly annoying. If you need to flip or rotate the item you are cooking they are constantly in the way and you need to be aware of where they are. Additionally, Dad has had those wires fail on him causing the unit to not work. The wires are the most common failure point. The MeatStick eliminates those wires entirely giving you much more freedom.
The MeatStick specs:
- $89.99 for Xtender Set
- Wireless Bluetooth Probe
- Dual Temperature Sensors
- Waterproof & Deep Fryer Safe
- Withstands up to 572 Degrees F
- Supports up to 8 Probes
- Rechargeable 24 Hour Battery
- IOS and Andriod App to Monitor
- 300ft Range with the Xtender
- Unlimited Range with the Wifi Bridge
The MeatStick probe & case:
The kit that Dad received for his MeatStick review was the Range Xtender kit. It has 3 parts to it. The first 2 parts are the Bluetooth probe and the charging case. The Meatstick snaps into the charging case for easy storage. Dad was really impressed with the look and feel of the unit. It feels like quality and looks really nice too.
The Bluetooth probe has 2 built-in sensors. The first sensor is the metal "spear" looking portion of the probe. This is inserted into the food and gives you the temperature of the food.
The second probe is built into the hilt of the probe. It is used to give you the ambient temp of the cooking environment. This comes in really handy and the MeatStick would not be as useful without it. For example, when Dad did his first cook he was grilling some bacon-wrapped filet mignons.
The temp gauge on the Weber Kettle grill was pegged at 600 degrees F. However, the actual temp where the probe was located at was far lower and only around 300 degrees F. There is a huge difference cooking at 600 vs 300.
Speaking of high temperatures. The fact that the MeatStick is waterproof and can withstand temps up to 572 degrees F is AMAZING. The idea that you can deep fry with this thing is unreal to Dad and something he can't wait to try.
The probe has an internal rechargeable battery that lasts for 24 hours and the case uses two AAA batteries to power it. Keep in mind that when you first receive the MeatStick it needs 4 hours to charge before you can cook so plan accordingly.
Once it has been initially charged you store it in the charging case and it will be ready whenever you are. Another nice feature is the case is magnetic on the back so you can stick it to anything metal.
The MeatStick Xtender:
Even though the MeatStick works without this piece its range is severely limited without it. It has a basic range of about 10 feet which can be less depending on what it is housed inside, like an oven or a grill. This little red box greatly improves that range. In fact, it bumps it all the way up to 300 feet! All you need to do is have this close to the probe when you are cooking and it does the rest.
The Xtender uses two AA batteries and is also magnetic like the charging case. Dad would not recommend sticking it on a the hot part of the exterior of your grill though. If there is a part that is cool enough for you to touch then it would be safe for the Xtender.
The MeatStick App review
The way you monitor the MeatStick is by using their app. They have versions for both IOS and Andriod so no matter what device you have it should work. Unless you have a Windows phone and then you are screwed, but what are you doing with one of those anyway?
The app is really easy to use and will even step you through setting up a cook. It gives you target temperatures for different foods and alerts during the cook. One feature Dad really liked was that you can set an early warning notification. Dad cooked his filets using the reverse sear method so he wanted to know when he was 10 degrees from his target temperature so he could sear them at the end. This worked out perfectly with the MeatStick and App.
The app also gives you countdowns to your finished temperature, tracks your total cook time, and logs all of the info on cooks so you can review it later.
Cooking with the MeatStick
Dad did a test cook using some prime filet mignons that he cut himself from a whole tenderloin he bought at his local big box store. If you want to know how to do that Dad has a video all about it. Since Dad only had one probe he had to assume that the others would cook to the same temperatures since the were the same size. Dad's target for his steak was medium-rare and the other steaks he was cooking had a target of medium for the wife and kiddo.
It took just shy of 30 minutes to cook all of Dad's steaks and they came out perfect. The Meatstick gave Dad the warning when the steak was at 125 degrees and it was time to start searing. Dad decided to pull his steak when it reached the target of 135 and let it rest and put the probe into the wife's steak so he could monitor hers to get it to 140.
The MeatStick review final thoughts
Even though Dad was given his unit for his MeatStick Review they did not pay Dad anything or require him to write a good review in exchange. All they asked was that Dad try it out and give his honest opinion. What is that opinion? Dad loved the MeatStick.
It was way easier to use and provided more information and features that his other "wireless" thermometer he was using. When Dad was doing his test cook he went all over his house to check the range and never lost connection. Dad's only complaints are that the probe is a little big and thick which can make it hard to put into some thinner cuts of meat like pork chops and chicken.
The MeatStick people have a solution for this, it is called the MeatStick Mini and it looks to be considerably smaller than the MeatStick. Dad hopes to get his hands on one and do a Mini MeatStick review when they are ready.
The other complaint Dad has is that he only has one probe! Dad would really love to have a handful of probes so he doesn't have to do the probe shuffle on the next cook. Other than that the MeatStick really seems like the best Wireless meat thermometer out there to Dad.
Why not watch Dad's unboxing video on the MeatStick?
Go check out Dad's youtube channel for all kinds of great cooking videos and food-related content.
