Superfast Thermapen thermometer from Ross Brown

Al fresco dining and barbecues are enjoyed by many people at this time of the year, even when the sun refuses to shine.

Food bugs like salmonella, E.coli and campylobacter love the warm, balmy days of summer therefore, to kill the bugs, we have to cook our meat, fish or poultry to a certain temperature.

Alternatively, we have to keep things cold (4 °C or below) until we are ready to cook or serve them. The safest way to ensure that food is at the correct temperature is to test it with an accurate probe thermometer.

The Thermapen is the ideal thermometer for the job as it has been tested by the British and World BBQ Champion, Ben Bartlett and also the winner of the UK National Final of Ready Steady Q (think Ready Steady Cook but on a BBQ), Steve Heyes.

Heyes credits his Thermapen for his win because it allowed him to cook his first ever quail to the perfect temperature in the final.

"One of the best things about Thermapens is the speed of reading, to my knowledge it's the only product that is quick enough to use on steaks to ensure you get the right temperature without overcooking," Heyes said.

Made in Britain by ETI, the SuperFast Thermapen thermometer is housed in a water resistant case that contains Biomaster which inhibits the growth of bacteria.

Simply pull out the foldaway, stainless steel, penetration probe to take an accurate, rapid temperature measurement in under four seconds. The large digital display gives precise, easy to read temperatures over the range of -49.9 to 299.9 °C with a 0.1 °C resolution.