# Math vs Reality in the kitchen **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 24, 2020, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326 "2020-11-24T03:21:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/1 "2020-11-24T03:21:33Z")
I like cooking my turkey slow and low but cooking times are based on cooking a whole turkey. If I were to stick a thermometer in the breast and once the temperature starts going up I use two times and temperature (to get the _k_) and the temperature of the oven (I know there is a ton of fluctuation hence the “math vs reality”), using [Newton’s heating formula](http://www2.gcc.edu/dept/math/faculty/BancroftED/teaching/handouts/Newtons_law_precalc_version.pdf) how accurate would my estimated finishing time be? ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/2 "2020-11-24T03:33:04Z")
It’s common for Chemical Engineering students to model the baking of a potato. During baking, chemical reactions and heat transfer are going on simultaneously. The basic potato model can be seen here : [Index](http://www.umich.edu/~elements/fogler&gurmen/html/web_mod/potato/index.htm) Newton’s law of cooling only tells you the heat loss from a body into the environment. It assumes that the whole body is at a constant temperature, so I am not sure how that will predict baking times. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/3 "2020-11-24T13:28:41Z")
All I know is that I always have to bake my pies a lot longer than the recipe says, if I want them to come out right. And we have learned from painful experience that the relationship between suggested cooking times and reality is fictitious at best. If we used the recognized formulas we’d get turkey sushi. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/4 "2020-11-24T13:49:56Z")
Well I guess I will find out. I made a spreadsheet to calculate estimated cooking time and will record the results. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2020, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/5 "2020-11-24T14:10:22Z")
You’ll need not just a thermometer for the breast but an [oven thermometer](https://www.amazon.de/s?k=ofenthermometer&ref=nb_sb_noss_2) as well because the temperature you set the oven to and the temperature the thermostate strives to achieve are seldom the same. Oven thermostate calibration seems to be a difficult task for the producers. ---
**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2020, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/6 "2020-11-26T16:13:43Z")
Yes, my oven here seems to run about 15 degrees lower than the temperature set on the dial. As I discovered when I got an oven thermometer. Of course that assumes the (rather el cheapo) thermometer itself is reliable, of course! ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2020, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-vs-reality-in-the-kitchen/926326/7 "2020-11-26T17:22:58Z")
That you can check: boiling water = 100°C (now don’t ask me about °F…). Big pot, 1/2 fill with water, boil water, suspend thermometer above water level (a wooden skewer is good for that), put lid on and measure the steam temperature after a couple of minutes. My cheapo is quite good 😃