Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/11/26/the-importance-of-turkey-fryin.html
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not a fan of a deep fried turkey.
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Never had it so i can’t say, but i have had smoked turkey and that was pretty fantastic.
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A weee little bit too close to the vinyl siding that is begging to also be deep fried…
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Yeah. Roasted. Grilled. Smoked. I’m good with all that. And truth be told if it were fried turkey PARTS…I’d be fine with it.
I am not a fan of frying a whole turkey. We don’t fry a whole chicken, we break it down and fry the parts. Any time someone says “hey I’m gonna heat up a few gallons of oil and drop a 20lb object into it” I nod my head and run far away.
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This video is full of sad.
ETA:
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Been there, very recently, with broken glass.
I presume even if a whole turkey can be fried safely its not going to cook the white and dark meat evenly. As you said, breaking it down into parts is going to give you a better result
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Spatchcock! The only way to evenly cook a fowl. When I do a chicken, I can hit 145° in the breast and 175° in the thigh 100% of the time. I haven’t had a chance to try a turkey as it hasn’t been my task the past few years since I developed my technique, but next time I do.
Oh, and pan-searing skin-down first gives that perfectly browned, crisp skin. Easiest prep ever.
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Yeh, i’ve heard that for baking spatchcocking is very effective. I don’t cook meat at home so i haven’t needed to try it out 
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I have deep-fried several turkeys and I think it’s worth the effort provided you can do it safely. The meat comes out more ■■■■■ and it cooks a lot faster than in an oven or BBQ. But I’ve only done it a couple of times. What I don’t like about it is that it is highly hazardous, but also I end up sitting outside, in the cold, alone, babysitting a boiling cauldron of oil for a couple of hours while everyone else is sitting inside, warm and cozy, eating all of the chex mix.
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We usually do a monster turkey (or two!) for a big crowd, but this year it’s a small little roaster, so maybe I’ll give that a shot.
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See if you broke down the turkey you could get away with using way less oil and would take even less time
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maybe the woman filming (the mom?) should be inside with the kids while the dad lights himself and the porch on fire?
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I am all for spatchcocking a bird, if only for my inner 12 yr old to keep saying it over and over and waggling my eyebrows at my spouse as she contemplates the deep deep regrets she has regarding her romantic decisions…but I digress…It is not the only way to evenly cook a bird.
Even cooking is really about temp control and monitoring. It’s not hard to check on your bird, regardless of your cooking method, on a regular interval. So many people have long done the “IMMA STICK THIS THING IN A 300deg OVEN AND LET IT COOK FOR 12 HOURS” and then can’t understand why it sucks. Just watch it, and adjust temp and position as needed. Use foil to protect areas and shield them when need be.
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later, the young woman says to her therapist, “and that’s when i decided to become a vegetarian.”
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Foil is hugely important. Roasting bags aren’t a bad idea, either.
I used to use Alton Brown’s brining method, which is great, but hugely labor intensive; now I just dry brine it in the fridge and have excellent results.
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True, it’s not the only way, but it’s pretty foolproof and is the only way that I’m aware of to hit those temp at the exact same time without intervention like covering portions with foil, etc. I can fully prep a bird and have it in the oven before the oven even get to temp. And even when I miss my temp mark, the breast is still so much cooler that it gives me a lot of wiggle room.
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my older son has been frying turkeys for about ten years now. the white and dark meat both turn out very tender and not at all dry. it requires situational awareness, sure, but it’s not rocket surgery.
i’ll also mention that deep-frying a whole duck is absolutely the best way to cook a whole duck i have ever seen. the skin is crispy as fuck, the meat is tender and juicy, and the whole bird is evenly cooked. i wouldn’t cook a duck any other way.
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