Homemade candy can be finicky . . . a couple degrees in one direction or the other can mean the difference between melt in the mouth perfection or a flub you can't scrape out of the pan- which, incidentally, is exactly how "Fudge" came into existence! Here's a simple, dirt cheap tip for ensuring that
Last year a member wrote in frustrated because she couldn't get her candy over 240° no matter what she tried, it turns out that her candy thermometer was bad and she was actually cooking at almost 300°!
Bring a saucepan of water to a rolling boil with your candy thermometer clipped to the side. Be sure that the thermometer tip is NOT touching the sides or bottom of the pan, but is fully submersed in water. Water will boil at 212° - but will not get any "hotter".
- Hard water boils at a slightly higher temperature (usually 1 or 2° due to the mineral content)
- Use of a Tall Narrow pot, rather than a saucepan will result in a boiling point of 213°
Altitude can have an affect on boiling point as well:
| Sea Level | 212.0 / 100.0 |
| 500 | 211.1 / 99.50 |
| 1000 | 210.2 / 99.01 |
| 1500 | |
| 2000 | 208.5 / 98.03 |
| 2500 | 207.6 / 97.54 |
| 3000 | 206.7 / 97.05 |
| 3500 | 205.8 / 96.57 |
| 4000 | 204.9 / 96.08 |
| 4500 | 204.1 / 95.60 |
| 5000 | 203.2 / 95.12 |
| 5500 | 202.4 / 94.64 |
| 6000 | 201.5 / 94.16 |
| 6500 | 200.6 / 93.69 |
| 7000 | 199.8 / 93.21 |
| 7500 | 198.9 / 92.74 |
| 8000 | 198.1 / 92.26 |
| 8500 | 197.2 / 91.79 |
| 9000 | 196.4 / 91.32 |
| 9500 | 195.5 / 90.86 |
| 10000 | 194.7 / 90.39 |
| Source: Boiling Point of Water vs. Altitude, K. Loomis, New Mexico State University Apache Point Observatory |
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Thermometers don't maintain accuracy forever, so be sure to check yours routinely!
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