The Big List of Temperatures

All temperatures listed in degrees Fahrenheit. Sorry, deal with it.

Mostly collected from J. Kenji López-Alt’s The Food Lab and Harold McGee’s On Food and Cooking. Please submit additions or corrections to temperatures@benburwell.com.

Temperature	Effect
3000	Gas burns
2000	Coals burn, electric cooking elements glow
400	At roasting temperatures at or above, meat surface browns quickly but high moisture loss and uneven interior temperature
400	Soufflés rise fastest above
350	A moderate roasting temperature offering a compromise between high-temperature browning and low-temperature evenness
325-350	Soufflés rise modestly
300-350	Typical shallow or deep frying temperature for meat
280	Ultra High Temperature cream pasteurization in 2 seconds, usually not sterile so must be refrigerated
265-300	Ultra High Temperature milk pasteurization, takes 1-3 seconds. Sterile, can be stored for months without refrigeration.
250	Milk solids in butter begin to brown and then burn. Hazel/black butter
250	Ideal pan temperature for fried eggs
250	Water boils in a pressure cooker
250	At roasting temperatures at or below, escaping moisture helps cool meat surface resuling in even temperature and doneness with little browning
240-250	250 Soft-ball candy stage
230-250	Milk sterilizes in 8-30 minutes, develops a strong flavor, can be stored indefinitely at room temperature.
212	Water boils at sea level
203	Water boils in Denver
200	Common oven tempterature for meringues
200	Meat fibers easily separate from each other, collagen dissolves rapidly
200	Approximate temperature of smoke
200	Fibers in fish begin to disintegrate
194	Water boils at 10,000 feet elevation
185	Cream for butter is pasteurized, resulting in a custardy, cooked aroma
185	Temperature required to eliminate some viruses present in seafood
180-190	Cooking temperature for hard-cooked eggs
180	Parmesan and pecorino melt
180	Ovalbumin (54% of total albumin protein) sets in egg whites
180	Egg whites become firm
180	Crème Anglaise thickens to coat a spoon
180	Actin (meat fiber protein) denatures and coagulates
175	Starch added to eggs will absorb water at or above and slow protein binding, preventing curdling
172	Lactoglobulin, a whey protein, denatures
171	Common modern milk pasteurization temperature
170	Milk develops “cooked” flavor (vanilla, almond, sulfer)
170	Lysozyme (3.5% of total albumin protein) sets in egg whites
170	Meat: USDA well
170	All fiber-weakening enzymes in fish have been denatured and inactivated
165	Poultry thigh meat should be cooked to at least in order to fully break down connective tissue
165	Cream > 20% fat pasteurizes after 30 minutes
165	Whole eggs (yolks + whites mixed together) set
162	Milk pasteurizes in 15 seconds
160-165	Cooking temperature for Middle Eastern long-cooked eggs (6-18 hours)
160	Some whey proteins begin to denature
160	Eggs free from salmonella after 1 minute
160	Collagen dissolves into gelatin
160	Myoglobin mostly denatured and coagulated
160	Meat becomes stiff, is gray/brown, has lost most moisture
160	Cooking temperature for emulsified sausages so that interior water does not boil, burst, and leak moisture
160	Fish has become stiff and dry
158	Egg yolk proteins set
155	Cream <= 20% fat pasteurizes after 30 minutes
155	E. coli die
155	Meat: well (USDA medium)
155	Poultry breast meat becomes dry and tough when heated above
150	Cheddar- and Swiss-style cheeses melt
150	Egg whites become a tender solid
150	Egg yolk proteins begin to thicken
150	Myoglobin continues to denature, turning meat from pink to brown or gray
150	Refrigerated cooked meat safe to eat after being reheated
150	Myocommata sheets in fish dissolve into gelatin
145	Milk pasteurizes in 30-35 minutes
145	Egg whites begin to thicken
145-155	Meat: medium well (USDA medium rare)
140-160	Meat tenderizing enzymes extracted from plants are most active
140-150	Collagen denatures and meats shrink, expel juices, and become chewier
140	Ovotransferrin (12% of total albumin protein) sets in egg whites
140	Eggs free from salmonella after 5 minutes
140	Eggs at or above will give off hydrogen sulfide, which produces the distinct eggy smell
140	Myoglobin begins to denature, meats start to lose deep red
140	Protein-bound water flows from meat cells under collagen pressure
140	Meat starts to shrink
140	Temperature required for eliminating bacteria and parasites in seafood
140	Fish becomes dry
137	Trichinosis-causing trichina spiralis worms die
135-145	Meat: medium (USDA rare)
130-180	Typical meat temperature during hot smoking
130-140	Pasteurization temperature for eggs
130-140	Most fish are firm but still moist
130	Whey is expelled from curd particles in cheesemaking
130	Soft cheeses melt
130-135	Meat: medium rare
130	Myosin, meat fiber protein, has coagulated
130	Collagen sheaths in meat begin to weaken
130	Fiber-weakening enzymes in fish have denatured
130	Fish becomes flaky as muscle sheets in begin to separate
122	Cathespins, enzymes which break down contractive filaments in meat and dissolve collagen into gelatin, denature and lose effectiveness at or above, but are most active just under
120-130	Meat: rare
120-130	Collagen in fish disolves into gelatin
120	Ideal meat carving and serving temperature
120	Meat develops a white opacity as myosin denatures and begins to coagulate
120	Myosin in fish has coagulated
110	Meat: bleu
110	Fish starts to shrink, becomes firmer and opaque
106-114	Yogurt ferments in 2-5 hours
105	Calpains, enzymes which break down structural proteins in meat, denature and lose effectiveness at or above
104-113	Thermophilic lactobaccili and streptococci bacteria thrive, develop high levels of lactic acid
100	Protein-bound water begins to escape and accumulate within meat cells
100	Myosin in fish begins to denature
100	Collagen sheaths in fish shrink and rupture
100	Escape of protein-bound water in fish accelerates
90	Milkfat in cheese melts
86	Yogurt ferments in 6-12 hours
85	Butter melts
85	Mesophilic lactococci and Leuconostoc bateria thrive, develop moderate levels of lactic acid in 12-24 hours
80	Koumiss ferments in 2-5 hours (before cool aging)
80	Milkfat in cheese begins to melt and sweat out of cheese
75	Propionibacter shermanii, the Swiss cheese hole-making bacteria, grows
72	Buttermilk ferments in 14-16 hours
72	Sour cream ferments in 16 hours
70	Fiber proteins in fish begin to unfold
70	Collagen in fish begins to weaken
70	Protein-bound water in fish begins to escape
70	Maximum emulsion temperature (before fat separates) for beef-based sausages
68	Crème fraîche ferments in 15-20 hours
68	Ropy milks ferment in 18 hours
68	Kefir ferments in 24 hours
60	100 Fermentation temperature range for sausages
60-80	Typical smoke box temperature for cold-smoking
60	Butter becomes spreadable
60	Maximum emulsion temperature (before fat separates) for pork-based sausages
55-60	Ideal cheese storage temperature
40-140	Salmonella multiply
40-45	Typical refrigerator temperature
40	Milk stored at or below will stay fresh for 10-18 days
40	Maximum storage temperature for meat confits
40	Margarine becomes spreadable
34-38	Dry-aging temperature for beef
32	Water freezes
32	Meats keep best at or below
32	Fish keeps twice as long on ice as at 40 (typical refrigeration temperature)
20-22	Soft-serve ice cream is served, half of water content is liquid
8-10	Ideal serving temperature for ice cream
5	Trichinosis-causing trichina spiralis worms die after 20 days at or below
0	Ideal maximum storage temperature for ice cream
0	Ideal freezing temperature for meats
0	Typical minimum home freezer temperature
-10	Parasites in fish die after 7 days
-22	At or above, fish myoglobin oxidizes and turns brownish, red tuna must be stored below to preserve color
-31	Parasites in fish die after 15 hours
-320	Boiling point of nitrogen