How to Deep Fry a Turkey
Follow these safety tips to ensure your holiday cooking is safe and enjoyable.
Thinking about deep frying a turkey this Thanksgiving? Watch the video to see firefighters demonstrate what not to do.
Here are some tips for safely deep frying a turkey:
- Look for the newer fryers with sealed lids to prevent oil spills.
- Keep the fryer in full view while the burner is on.
- Keep children and pets away from the cooking area.
- Place the fryer in an open area away from all walls, fences or other structures.
- Never use the fryer in, on or under a garage, breezeway, carport, porch, deck or any other structure that can catch fire.
- Slowly raise and lower the turkey to reduce hot-oil splatter and to avoid burns.
- Never cook in short sleeves, shorts or bare feet. Cover all bare skin when dunking or removing bird.
- Protect your eyes with goggles or glasses.
- Immediately turn off the fryer if the oil begins to overheat.
- Make sure the turkey is completely thawed and be careful with marinades. Oil and water don’t mix and water can cause oil to spill over, creating a fire or even an explosion.
- Don’t overfill fryer with oil. Turkey fryers can ignite in seconds after oil hits the burner.
- Keep a fire extinguisher appropriate for oil fires close at hand and be familiar with how to operate it.
- Do not use a hose in an attempt to douse a turkey fryer fire.
- If you do burn yourself, or someone else is burned, seek immediate medical attention.
There are several recipes online for deep fried turkey including:
- Alton Brown's Deep Fried Turkey Recipe
- Deep Fried Turkey Recipe from AllRecipes.com
- Paula Deen's Deep Fried Turkey Recipe
The featured video originally appeared on Encinitas Patch.