Pop-up turkey timers often lead to overcooked disasters.

Florence Fabricant of The New York Times writes the reason was clear after she called a manufacturer: the timers are set to pop when the meat is 180 degrees, by which point it is hopelessly dry.

(Poor Canadians, still told to cook to 185F, but that may change to 180F; that’s what the gravy is for.)

So Fabricant tried out the Perfect Roast Timer, by Kikkerland in SoHo, made in China, is $12.95 at Mxyplyzyk stores, mxyplyzyk.com.

Fabricant says that after an hour and 20 minutes in a 375-degree oven, the legs of the timer whipped straight up from horizontal to vertical. “I let the chicken rest for 20 minutes before carving what turned out to be an utterly delicious bird, done to perfection. The timers are silicon and can be used in ovens as hot as 450 degrees.”

Tip sensitive digital thermometers also work. Stick it in.

And here’s a Saturday Night Live promo for, uh, Saturday’s show, featuring Bill Hader vomiting a turkey and guest host Anne Hathaway dry-heaving afterwards.