DEEP FRIED THANKSGIVING TURKEY EXPERIENCE!

Year after year several people would say, "I can't wait to have some deep fried turkey." So this year I decided to try it for myself. I ordered a Bayaou Classic kit on Amazon. I already had an outdoor portable stove. And I purchased a 20 pound bird from a local grocery store.

When mentioning deep frying, the first thing that many people said was, "don't blow yourself up." With that warning I did plenty of research. The best video was by Alton Brown. I was surprised how easy the preparation was. Key instruction to the whole ordeal, allow at least 2 days to defrost the bird. The lack of proper defrosting is what causes the "big boom."

After the turkey is defrosted, Alton instructed to place it in a simple brine of brown sugar and salt for 12-16 hours. In retrospect, the meat should have been injected with the brine as well. To be able to hold the brine and turkey, its wise to use a large container like a 5 gallon drinking cooler. Place the cooler in a cool place during brining process. The legs and wings of the bird always flare out a bit so I used some meat rope to hold it together better.

The next day, take the turkey out of the brine and allow it to sit at least an hour before placing it in the  oil. This time frame allows for any additional defrosting if necessary. 

Meanwhile, I did the deep fryer step and Alton Brown contraption to lower the bird into the bubbling oil without getting too close to it. Its a very simple set up with a pulley system, a strong rope, a ladder and carbine.  

On Thanksgiving I ran into a frequent problem we have on the hill is some strong wind gusts. So I had to set things up in the least windy spot, behind the house and only 5 feet from the house. I was pretty confident the bird had defrosted all the way. 

The next few steps had a bit of a learning curve. None of the recipes and instructions actually indicated how long it takes to bring the peanut oil to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. On top of that, it was 54 degrees outside. I was grateful it wasn't freezing or else it would have taken much longer. So about an hour before we were "supposed to eat" I lowered the turkey into the oil. It took me about an hour to bring the oil temp to 250. 

Walmart brand oil

Had this handy just in case!!!

Alton Brown recommendation--it worked well!

Alton Brown's recipes called for checking the turkey temp at 45 minutes of cooking. My 20 pound bird was only at 120 at 45 min. I had to cook for another 45 min to get it to 151 degrees of internal temp of the breasts. 

Then after it is removed from the oil it should rest for 30 minutes to finish cooking up to 165 degrees. The honest truth is I only waited 15 min. and checked the temp to be at the proper cooking degrees. It was nice and crisp on the outside and most on the inside.  So I set it on the plate and craved the turkey. 

Overall review:

1. I am not a great fan of bland tasting meat. I could have used a lot more spices and meat injection. Some coworkers said a dry rub would have been a good thing as well. 

2. If you know that your turkey is defrosted well then it would have been better to get the oil temp to 350 degrees and then placed the turkey into it.

3. I would definitely give myself a lot more time to deep frying process before desired time of eating.

4. Don't deep fry when the weather sucks outside. It would have been a very miserable experience had it been raining or snowing or brutal cold.

5. Next time I would definitely use a smaller bird. It really doesn't have to be 20 lb. For our family a 15-18 lb would have been just fine.

I really enjoy cooking meat, and although the meat turned out cooked but it was an OK success only. I feel like I have to redeem myself for myself. So I will deep fry a turkey again but with a few changes as indicated above.