Stainless-steel Skewers

I find a fine skewer the most useful instrument to test when vegetables are cooked. Because it is thin I can feel the texture within a potato more accurately than with a paring knife. Before the invention of the meat ‘probe’ thermometer [see ‘Thermometers’], a skewer was used to test the doneness of cooked meat by inserting it into the thickest part of the piece. After 30 seconds the internal temperature was transmitted to the skewer, which the cook placed on his or her lower lip to register.