Anyone ever deep fry a turkey?

Undertaker #59* on 09-26-2007 at 11:30 AM said:
In the thing I deep fry the turkey in, I haven't done anything else, too much work.

But we have one of those little counter top fryolaters that I have done all kinds of things in.

Hot wings - deep fry the wings for about 12 minutes while melting a stick of butter into Frank's hot sauce. When wings are done toss with the hot sauce.

Potato chips - just thinly slice a potato, deep fry to desired crispiness, and salt thoroughly.

All kinds of frozen foods like fries and onion rings.

Bloomin' onion - found a recipe somewhere online, a lot of work, but it came out almost exactly like Outbacks.

Fried chicken of course - marinade chicken in buttermilk over night, then dredge it in a dry mix.

Mrs T's potato and onion perogies.

Mozzarella sticks - I used a real package of Mozz and cut into the right size shapes. Dredge in italian bread crumbs and fry for just a couple of minutes. I have read that just using those polly-o string cheese works well.

I haven't done anything with pork or beef, most of that has been on the grill. I think next time I fire that thing up though, I am going to try to do deep fried calzones.

Damn UT, party at your house!:thumb:
 
Undertaker #59* on 09-26-2007 at 07:33 AM said:
I've done it enough times now that I am pretty comfortable with it. Yeah, I use about three gallons of oil. Usually canola oil, but peanut oil is the best (and most expensive).

THis could be soooooooooooooo taken out of context.ROFL
 
I've done it a couple of times and it is as good as you have heard.

The key thing is to be able to read.

For instance, many rednecks who can't read decide to overfill the fryer with oil and once it has reached the temperature of boiling lava they drop the turkey in and watch the oil overflow the top of the pot and instantly vaporize their hunting boots, then their feet and finally the linoleum floor of their trailer before the entire mess bursts into flames.

One way to avoid this is to fill the pot with water before adding oil and then lower the turkey into the water to check to see how much water is displaced.

When the water reaches the proper level -- meaning the turkey is covered, but there is still plenty of room between the liquid and the rim of the pot-- you remove the turkey and mark the top of the liquid. That is how much oil you add (after emptying and drying the pot).

I use peanut oil, which can be bought in 5 gallon sizes at Walmart etc. It is pretty expensive, but can be reused several times. If I remember right, about 7 gallons of oil is about right depending on the bird.

Bottom line is don't cook the turkey on anything you can't afford to lose, but given reasonable precautions it isn't that dangerous.

Lowering the turkey very gradually into the boiling oil is also a real good idea, because there is always a little water on the bird from thawing etc. and oil and water don't mix.

I've done the whole bit, so hit me back with any specific questions.

The stuff is better than a baked bird and not nearly as greasy as you might assume. It also takes about 1/5 as long as baking.

Each method of cooking has it's pros and cons.
This one of those posts that I think about every Thanksgiving.
One of many by Mr. Hawg that had made me laugh.
 
LOL. We did the deep fried turkey at a tailgate party at Foxboro Terminals. It was sensational... we also cooked a 14 pound lobster that day. It attracted the attention of an ESPN camera crew roaming the parking lot looking for lunatics. We fit the bill.
 
Deep fry a turkey? First I've heard of this and I'm a) slightly disgusted at the thought of deep fried Turkey and also b) surprised it's not something I've heard of before as deep-frying things is pretty much a national pastime here in Scotland.
 
Deep fry a turkey? First I've heard of this and I'm a) slightly disgusted at the thought of deep fried Turkey and also b) surprised it's not something I've heard of before as deep-frying things is pretty much a national pastime here in Scotland.
it's utterly delicious is all I can assure you......
 
Back
Top