What are you having for Thanksgiving?

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bearfacedkiller
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#21

Post by bearfacedkiller »

The issue with turkey frying is that sometimes the pot of oil overflows from the turkey being too wet/frozen. On top of that people sometimes drop the bird into the pot as it begins to happen and droppin a 12+ pound bird into it doesnt help. The oil spilling over onto the propane burner starts the fire. Then, if the fryer is on a deck or in a garage then the whole place goes up.

You need a thawed out and dry turkey and you need to lower it slowly into the oil. This should be done outside on a fire proof surface like a driveway or patio.

I like the ladder method but any way to rig up a pulley makes it safe and easy. If pot begins to biol over you just raise it back up. I have never done it personally but I have witnessed it a few times.

here is a pic I borrowed from instructables.com

Image
-Darby
sal wrote:Knife afi's are pretty far out, steel junky's more so, but "edge junky's" are just nuts. :p
SpyderEdgeForever wrote: Also, do you think a kangaroo would eat a bowl of spagetti with sauce if someone offered it to them?
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#22

Post by bearfacedkiller »

This past Saturday a friend smoked a turkey and it came out great.

I usually spatchcock my birds. I do this all year with chickens and every holiday season with the turkey. It cooks evenly, gives you crispy skin and it still makes for a good presentation. Plus, spatchcock is kind of a fun word.

You pretty much just cut the spine out with shears and then remove a bone called the keel bone( kind of like a birds sternum). After that you lay it flat and bake it flat on a pan. Comes out great!

Another borrowd pic. This time from playswellwithbutter.com
This is pretty much exactly how I do it with all the veggies and neck and stuff in the pan with it. You can see the backbone that was cut out on top and the neck on the bottom. Those go in the soup pot after.

Image
-Darby
sal wrote:Knife afi's are pretty far out, steel junky's more so, but "edge junky's" are just nuts. :p
SpyderEdgeForever wrote: Also, do you think a kangaroo would eat a bowl of spagetti with sauce if someone offered it to them?
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#23

Post by JD Spydo »

prndltech wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 9:56 am
JD Spydo wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 9:47 am
prndltech wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:51 am
Im not sure. To be honest, I never really know. I’m frying a turkey... that’s my job. I’ll get the bird, prep it and fry it. Everyone else handles the rest. I usually go to my parents house and we have a collection of random people - sometimes it’s a motley crew. Never fully know what to expect.
Set me straight please. I've heard that deep frying those turkeys is kind of dangerous and there have been some horrible accidents that people have had as a result. I've been told that if you turkey isn't 100% thawed out it can literally explode on you? Is that correct? I've been told that by several people over the past 3 years.
Also what would be the advantage in frying a whole turkey versus just baking one in the oven?
If frozen, yes they will shoot hot oil out the top of the pot, which will then ignite from the burner causing a grease fire essentially. I’ve done it for years and never had an issue, when you pull the bird out of the package and are taking the Giblets and stuff out the middle, you’ll know if it’s frozen. Those accidents are from people A) not paying attention, B) not knowing what they’re doing or C) all of the above. It’s not hard.

You don’t want the oil to overflow. I test the bird in the pot with water first, before heating anything so I know how much oil to add. Then pat the bird dry, heat the oil and there ya go!

Also, there is an oil-less fryer I use now, called THE BIG EASY! No oil, no mess, barely any clean up, no preheat time, same results.

The difference with frying is SUPER MOIST TENDER BIRD! You have to try it to know. Words can’t describe the perfect crispy outside and melt in your mouth turkey on the inside.

Don’t be afraid. It’s really very easy, after the first go at it, you’ll be a pro.
One simple and maybe to some extent a dumb question??? What kind of oil do you use to fry them in? With some of the oils like Olive oil for instance actually cost a minor fortune anymore. And I'm kind of picky about what I cook with. I don't use any trans fat or hydrogenated oils at all.

I've heard that many of the fish & chip eating places use Peanut oil a lot. I've also heard that Safflower oil is good to cook with as well.
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#24

Post by prndltech »

JD Spydo wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 1:19 pm
prndltech wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 9:56 am
JD Spydo wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 9:47 am
prndltech wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:51 am
Im not sure. To be honest, I never really know. I’m frying a turkey... that’s my job. I’ll get the bird, prep it and fry it. Everyone else handles the rest. I usually go to my parents house and we have a collection of random people - sometimes it’s a motley crew. Never fully know what to expect.
Set me straight please. I've heard that deep frying those turkeys is kind of dangerous and there have been some horrible accidents that people have had as a result. I've been told that if you turkey isn't 100% thawed out it can literally explode on you? Is that correct? I've been told that by several people over the past 3 years.
Also what would be the advantage in frying a whole turkey versus just baking one in the oven?
If frozen, yes they will shoot hot oil out the top of the pot, which will then ignite from the burner causing a grease fire essentially. I’ve done it for years and never had an issue, when you pull the bird out of the package and are taking the Giblets and stuff out the middle, you’ll know if it’s frozen. Those accidents are from people A) not paying attention, B) not knowing what they’re doing or C) all of the above. It’s not hard.

You don’t want the oil to overflow. I test the bird in the pot with water first, before heating anything so I know how much oil to add. Then pat the bird dry, heat the oil and there ya go!

Also, there is an oil-less fryer I use now, called THE BIG EASY! No oil, no mess, barely any clean up, no preheat time, same results.

The difference with frying is SUPER MOIST TENDER BIRD! You have to try it to know. Words can’t describe the perfect crispy outside and melt in your mouth turkey on the inside.

Don’t be afraid. It’s really very easy, after the first go at it, you’ll be a pro.
One simple and maybe to some extent a dumb question??? What kind of oil do you use to fry them in? With some of the oils like Olive oil for instance actually cost a minor fortune anymore. And I'm kind of picky about what I cook with. I don't use any trans fat or hydrogenated oils at all.

I've heard that many of the fish & chip eating places use Peanut oil a lot. I've also heard that Safflower oil is good to cook with as well.
PEANUT OIL!!!


Also, check out “the big easy” oil-less fryer
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#25

Post by Water Bug »

Current game plan for Thanksgiving is a turkey leg, smoked whole chicken, sliced ham, mashed potatoes, dressing, giblet gravy, green beans, yams with marshmellows, cranberry sauce, salad, and alcoholic beverages. This along with parades, dog shows, and football games on TV. :)
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#26

Post by Doc Dan »

No peanut oil. Nasty stuff. Sunflower seed oil is great.
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#27

Post by JD Spydo »

Doc Dan wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 11:16 pm
No peanut oil. Nasty stuff. Sunflower seed oil is great.
Hey I didn't know and that's why I asked>> I would much rather ask a dumb question than to do something really dumb or maybe disastrous.

I did do some research on Safflower Oil and each website I looked at had it rated as a high temp cooking oil. I would think that frying a turkey would require a higher than normal temperature in relation to the size of the bird you are cooking?

I have some Sunflower Oil that DOC just mentioned and it's also rated as a high temp cooking oil as well.
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#28

Post by bearfacedkiller »

When looking at cooking oils you need to separate them into refined and unrefined. Refined oils are gross but refining raises the smoke point significantly. Only a few oils have high smoke points when unrefined and they can be pricey. Sunflower oil is affordable and has a high smoke point even when unrefined which is why I use it a lot.

I don’t know all the details on how it is refined but it involves solvents, possibly xylene or similar.
-Darby
sal wrote:Knife afi's are pretty far out, steel junky's more so, but "edge junky's" are just nuts. :p
SpyderEdgeForever wrote: Also, do you think a kangaroo would eat a bowl of spagetti with sauce if someone offered it to them?
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#29

Post by JD Spydo »

How do these "Non Oil or Oil-less Fryers work? I've heard of these units that Brother "prndltech" speaks of but I've never had any experience with them and I don't know anyone who has.

I just can't wrap my head around a fryer that doesn't use a cooking oil. And with the cost of several types of cooking oil going through the roof in the past 5 years I would want to set up something to where you could maybe fry 4 or 5 turkey's the same day and lowering the cost burden for a few people rather than one guy having to blow an entire C-Note on one cooking.

I really love to smoke and/or Bar BQ turkeys and many other meat items for that matter. There is something so satisfying about the flavor and texture of well smoked meat. Especially when I live in an area where hickory, apple, cherry and several fruit orchard woods being easily available. We even have 6 species of hickory here in Missouri. Not to mention the vast amount of fruit orchards and the wood off of those trees being easily available.

But I do bet a person could fry probably at least 3 to 4 turkeys with one big batch of cooking oil before it would go bad or rancid. I would like to hear from you guys who have had experience in frying Turkeys and/or smoking them too.
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#30

Post by Tdog »

Most of the people I know have used peanut oil for frying turkeys That’s why all the stores in our area stock the gallon and three gallon containers around the holidays. Works well for frying all seafood too.
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#31

Post by bearrowland »

We're helping fix and distribute Thanksgiving meals for anyone that needs a meal at our church. Afterwards, we're going to my father in law's house to have turkey, stuffing, spuds and pumpkin pie.
Barry

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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#32

Post by Doc Dan »

JD Spydo wrote:
Wed Nov 27, 2019 10:01 am
Doc Dan wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 11:16 pm
No peanut oil. Nasty stuff. Sunflower seed oil is great.
Hey I didn't know and that's why I asked>> I would much rather ask a dumb question than to do something really dumb or maybe disastrous.

I did do some research on Safflower Oil and each website I looked at had it rated as a high temp cooking oil. I would think that frying a turkey would require a higher than normal temperature in relation to the size of the bird you are cooking?

I have some Sunflower Oil that DOC just mentioned and it's also rated as a high temp cooking oil as well.
I didn’t mean to come off like that. What I mean is that a LOT of people are allergic to peanuts. It is almost always very severe. It is a defense mechanism of the peanut. There are other oils that cook just as well that pose little health risk.
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#33

Post by prndltech »

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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#34

Post by Doc Dan »

prndltech wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:51 am
Image
Then pour the oil in and heat it up? Much safer that way.
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#35

Post by prndltech »

Doc Dan wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:11 pm

Then pour the oil in and heat it up? Much safer that way.
Oil-less fryer. Pour no oil in.
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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#36

Post by Doc Dan »

I just cooked a pork roast and I’m roasting 2 chickens. I’m also making a sweet potato casserole. I’m thinking of rosemary potatoes. I’ll see how much time I have.

I’m really looking forward to the lamb. I love it when fixed right. Between us chickens I’ll confide that I’m not exited by the fish pie. But who knows? It might be good.

I’m making cranberry juice/7Up punch to drink.
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#37

Post by Doc Dan »

prndltech wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:14 pm
Doc Dan wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:11 pm

Then pour the oil in and heat it up? Much safer that way.
Oil-less fryer. Pour no oil in.
That’s cool. I’ve never used one. I thought the turkey was in a basket and the oil would be poured in around it. I see that I was wrong very happily. How well does that cook? Does the inside get completely done without burning the outside?
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: What are you having for Thanksgiving?

#38

Post by prndltech »

Doc Dan wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:18 pm
prndltech wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:14 pm
Doc Dan wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 11:11 pm

Then pour the oil in and heat it up? Much safer that way.
Oil-less fryer. Pour no oil in.
That’s cool. I’ve never used one. I thought the turkey was in a basket and the oil would be poured in around it. I see that I was wrong very happily. How well does that cook? Does the inside get completely done without burning the outside?
Exact same results as frying with oil. Without the cost of oil, or having to dispose of it. Done both for years!
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