FRYING A TURKEY

Category: Our resident chef

I have blathering for months around my family about frying a turkey. Well, they finally called my bluff. Last week, I walked into my mother-in-law’s house on Sunday afternoon. Sitting in the middle of the kitchen was a brand new turkey fryer. I was also informed there was a fresh (not frozen) Empire turkey in the fridge in the basement.

And so it began. In addition to the 12 pound bird, there was a boatload of peanut oil. Peanut oil works best. My turkey fryer was purchased from Home Depot. It can accomodate a 12 pound bird. So I was right at my limit for safe frying. One word of advice for anyone who wants to try this preparation at home……DO IT OUTSIDE!!!!! And have a fire extinguisher handy…just in case. After reading the instructions, so as not to electrocute or burn myself, I got started. I poured 2 1/2 gallons of peanut oil into the fryer. It took about 50 minutes to get to the required temperature. Prior to all of this, I thoroughly rinsed the bird. Then I dried the cavity and the outside. I left the bird uncovered in the fridge to further dry out the skin. This helps the skin become nice and crispy. A dry bird also minimizes the possibility of oil splattering up into your face. Okay…so my oil is ready and the here goes the bird into a 400 degree bath of peanut oil. Do not over fill the fryer. There is a reason why 800 years ago boiling oil was used as a weapon. After immersion in the fryer, there is precious little to do until it is done. However, unless you are frying in the middle of a field with nothing flammable around, I suggest that you monitor your fryer with your fire extinguisher close by. The rule of thumb is 3 minutes for every pound of bird plus 5 minutes. I found that to be okay but extended that total by 5 additional minutes. This produced a crispy skinned, juicy turkey in under 2 hours of cooking time. However, I was slightly disappointed. It was not as flavorful as my brother-in-law’s Thanksgiving turkey. Mind you I did not rub or inject the bird with any type of seasoning. I never season my meat or poultry. As you are all aware, kosher meat is soaked and salted. This natural brining combined with the high quality (and price) of kosher meat renders all that unnecessary in my humble opinion. The cleanup in frying a turkey is a nightmare. Get a fryer that has an escape valve and buy a funnel to aid in disposal of the oil. That being said, this little adventure was worth a try. My ideal use for this dish is turkey sandwiches for the following days. This is ideal for picnics. The sandwiches this week have been fantastic. If one has the time or inclination erev shabbos, the left-over turkey would make an ideal shabbos lunch.

Coming Soon…………..

Spaghetti with kosher whitefish caviar.