Fried Turkey

First off, I'm the worst. I know. Sorry it's been so long!

Onto the fried turkey... Jamie and I fried a turkey over Thanksgiving and it was awesome. It is so speedy, and the skin is crispy and delicious. The internal brine gives the turkey meat an extra zip. I highly recommend it! The only issue is the oil. We strained it and put it back in the giant Costco canister and I hear we can use it two more times so we're planning a winter frying party, but after that I'm not sure. I read online someone gave theirs to someone who uses bio diesel in their car? I don't know. We were lucky and had a beautiful, warm Thanksgiving day, and everyone kept coming outside to see this miraculous contraption - and smell the amazingness that is a turkey frying in a vat of peanut oil.

I mostly used this recipe from the New York Times, but tried Alton Brown's method of dipping the turkey in at 250 to avoid splatter. I think if your turkey is dry enough, this is unnecessary. It takes the oil a long time to heat back up. Just make sure your bird is super dry!

Ingredients:
1 12 pound turkey
5 gallons of peanut oil


For the brine
3/4 cup chopped onion

3/4 cup chopped celery

3 to 6 tablespoons chopped garlic

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons (or more) chopped hot peppers from pepper vinegar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cayenne

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 cup chicken stock

Directions:

A day before, make the brine. Saute the onion, celery, and garlic in butter until tender. Add the hot peppers and Worcestershire sauce, then add salt, cayenne, and black pepper, then add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Strain through a fine mesh sieve, pushing out as much as you can. 

Put the turkey in the frying pot, cover it with water so that it's covered by an inch or two. Then take the turkey out of the pot and mark the water line. This is where you will fill with the oil.

With a giant flavor injector needle, inject the brine into the turkey breast in 5 places and 1 in each leg. Put the turkey on a platter and put it in the fridge overnight, uncovered. (This helps it dry out and makes the skin extra crispy.)

The next day, fill up the pot with oil about 2 hours before you want to eat. It'll probably take almost an hour to heat up to 350. Once at 350, us the fryers contraption for hooking up and lowering the turkey and lower it into the oil.

Cook it for 5 minutes, and then 3 minutes per pound.

Stay next to this thing the whole time! Safety is very, very important!!!

The temperature of the breast should be 151 degrees.

Then let it drain for about half an hour, then dig in!!

P.S. A special shout out to the lovely Tori Thain who sadly reminded me that I hadn't posted since the Veal Chop. Thank you for reading my blog!!! Please come over for dinner :)