I've been deep frying turkeys for many years now, after getting hooked on it by a friend (Chad, with no blog...). Now deep frying turkeys seems common, you can buy a the equipment at almost any store (Costco, Fred Meyers, etc.) - but it turns out there are some people that still don't believe it really happens. JFo asked that I document my deep frying this year to prove to some friends in Australia that this really does happen...

The preparation of the bird is critical. The most crucial step is to put the bird into your pot, and fill the pot with water until the bird is submerged. You then remove the bird, and now you can measure the water to determine how much oil to add. After you've measured your largest bird (if you are doing more than one), you can fill the pot to the right level with oil (Peanut is the traditional, but Canola or other vegetable oil works great). Starting heating the oil to 350.

What you put on the bird is up to you. I do a cajun rub on the outside. Some people inject the turkey with spices, others do it bare.

Then you put the bird in.

Submerging a turkey in 350 degree oil makes it cook quick. 3.5 minutes per pound, and your are done. My fryer only handles about 12# birds, which means that I have a max wait of around 45 minutes, yeah!

Then you pull the bird out...

 All thats left is carving the turkey, and finally eating!

DFT (Deep Fried Turkey) is not greasy or higher in fat, etc, than regular turkey. The skin has some oil on it, but overall the turkey really cooks in it's own juices - which get completely sealed into the turkey. It is the most juicy flavourful turkey you have ever had. Cleanup is a bit fun (you poor the oil back into the containers after it is cool, then scrub up everything), but in general it is way faster than roasting a turkey.

A couple hints for those of you thinking of trying this:

• Buy disposable roasting pans. They help with prep and give you a place to put the turkey afterwards, and easy cleanup.
• Use disposable over liners as a place to set the basket when you pull the turkey (or set the spike if you have that kind of fryer).
• Soak the pot immediately with hot soapy water - then put the whole thing in the dishwasher (this is a new hint that my friend Erick gave me this year).

Happy Frying!