Be careful on Thanksgiving

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begreen

Mooderator
Staff member
Hearth Supporter
Nov 18, 2005
107,098
South Puget Sound, WA
I've never used a turkey fryer, but here is why UL will not certify them.

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Add a little booze and the distraction of company and I can see how this can happen. Be careful folks, we want you back here after Thanksgiving is over.

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Been deep frying for years and usually do my neighbors also.Yes its dangerous at first till you learn.Just put the bird in very slow.
 
Huh? So you mean I been doin' it wrong all these years? I thought it was supposed to catch on fire. Man, I feel really stupid now...
 
Mike from Athens said:
Huh? So you mean I been doin' it wrong all these years? I thought it was supposed to catch on fire. Man, I feel really stupid now...


You didn't see the video? I'm assuming the guys in firefighter outfits are indeed professionals, and it caught on fire every time they put it in! I think you're doing it correctly.

EDIT: I just saw the second video... 75 injuries from turkey fryers in 10 years??? There are more injuries than that from coconuts falling on people's heads over a 10 year period, and many of these resulted in death. I think I'm signifigantly LESS worried about turkey fryer fire now.
 
I've never deep-fried a turkey, but I understand that one of the common errors is to drop a formerly-frozen-and-not-yet-completely-thawed bird into that very hot oil. Then you get like a turkey/oil/steam explosion, and then oil hits the flames beneath and you've just eaten your Thanksgiving dinner (or it's eaten you) in a way you didn't anticipate. Risky business for the same kind of folks who run gas generators inside their homes during power outages. Perfectly safe, I'm sure, for someone with a lick of sense who understands what's going on there and knows what the heck they're doing. Rick
 
Mike from Athens said:
Huh? So you mean I been doin' it wrong all these years? I thought it was supposed to catch on fire. Man, I feel really stupid now...
Sarcasm never works on the internet :)
 
fossil said:
Risky business for the same kind of folks who run gas generators inside their homes during power outages. Perfectly safe, I'm sure, for someone with a lick of sense who understands what's going on there and knows what the heck they're doing. Rick

Our generator stays outside. The only gas generator that will ever be running inside our house is likely me, unless we get a dog again! ;-) :ohh:
 
WOW!! I just bought one of these and will be using it soon, hope I have better luck than the fireman! I also plan on using the base with a cast iron pot to melt lead for fishing sinkers. I wonder if they have any wood or pellet fired turkey fryers?? LOL..
 
Summertime said:
I wonder if they have any wood or pellet fired turkey fryers?? LOL..


Someone call PE, the next big thing is here!
 
Jay777 said:
...Sarcasm never works on the internet :)

If this is really true, then I'm gonna have to re-think whether or not I even need a computer. %-P Rick
 
Summertime said:
WOW!! I just bought one of these and will be using it soon, hope I have better luck than the fireman! I also plan on using the base with a cast iron pot to melt lead for fishing sinkers. I wonder if they have any wood or pellet fired turkey fryers?? LOL..

I think you will be ok as long as you follow the guidelines they give at the end of the second video newscast. That's why I posted the videos. Do it outdoors on level ground away from the house. Be sure the turkey is completely thawed. Don't use too much oil. And have an extinguisher nearby.
 
I hope my lesser friend Todd doesn't see this. He's going to do one in his basement tomorrow and I'm stopping by. Things are looking up!
Thanks BeeGee's
 
A teacher at a local high school vocational school learned about the hazards of turkey fryers a few years back. Now, he's no dummy and a pretty smart and safe guy, but he had the turkey fryer set up on his front deck . . . left it unattended and the lack of a thermostat lead to the fryer catching on fire.

The good news: He was prepared with a fire extinguisher located nearby so the deck and house had no damage.

The bad news: He learned firsthand that the wife and her family do not consider a canned ham a proper substitute for a turkey . . . and he also learned that in on Thanksgiving afternoon in his hometown the local grocery store does not have a lot of choices to pick from when it comes to finding a replacement for a burned turkey. :)
 
I fried 3 turkeys with great success, I will never eat baked turkey again.. just make sure you follow all of the precautions and you will be fine.
 
May I degrade the thread a bit?
A Few friends and relatives have concluded that the cost is too high for all the veg oil required. If you only fry the turkey and nothing else, it was running about $20 for the oil. I realize, of course, that the price of oil-per-turkey falls significantly with the cooking of several birds in succession. (This is routinely done by tailgaters, and they do have fun.)

So the question: Anyone have suggestions for reducing the costs?
 
Isn't tallow cheaper than vegetable oil? It sure will taste better.
 
I fried one turkey in mine when I first bought it. Your right, the oil is expensive and it can be dangerous if not attended to at all times when in use. I use it for steaming lobsters and clams during the summer months and corn on the cob also.
 
You can reuse the oil a couple of times before it goes bad, making french fries actually filters the oil somewhat, what do you think McDonalds does?
 
granpajohn said:
May I degrade the thread a bit?
A Few friends and relatives have concluded that the cost is too high for all the veg oil required. If you only fry the turkey and nothing else, it was running about $20 for the oil. I realize, of course, that the price of oil-per-turkey falls significantly with the cooking of several birds in succession. (This is routinely done by tailgaters, and they do have fun.)

So the question: Anyone have suggestions for reducing the costs?

I usually do 2 turkeys and 1 or 2 chickens to get my $ worth, then vacuum freeze them. Also fried a pork roast that came out great. Cabelas has a special pump if you want to save the oil.
 
get a large funnel and a bunch of cheese cloth and pour the oil back into the large jug from which it came. You can use the oil to fry anything - chicken cutlets, dough, wings, meatballs...
 
If you don't fry often, I can see how it wouldn't be worth it. We often make french fries, f4rench toast, mozzarella sticks, etc so we tend to use the fryer a lot. Still haven't made a turkey, though.

I saw a bottle of peanut oil sized for a turkey fryer(had a turkey on the box) for 48.99 at the grocery store yesterday. I nearly cried. That's such an incredible markup for damn near the most plentiful vegetable oil out there. Not sure how many gallons it was, but it was less than 5.
 
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