286768 Thu Dec 07 12:57:26 -0800 2000 12 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1539137 I've been thinking about fried turkey since reading the (VERY funny) Quirky Turkey article in the Times Mag, and I just noticed a message on the Texas board about this ... Has anyone out there actually done (or eaten) the whole fried turkey thing? Does it really only take 49 - yes 49 - minutes? Is it worth the trouble? Can you do the same thing with a chicken? Or do chicken fried turkey to avoid the gigantic vat of oil? Thanks! Thu Dec 07 12:57:26 -0800 2000 0 Lisa Z 1 1539138 I've prepared fried turkey many times. And, yes, you can prepare chickens the same way. However, you must have the right equipment and it must be done outside away from the house. It must also be watched very carefully. Last time we fried a 14-pound turkey and I think it took about 50 minutes. The oil only conveys the heat to the bird. If it is done correctly, only a couple of tablespoons of oil is lost. The result is absolutely delicious. My only complaint is that you end up with so much leftover oil and in order to reuse it you must filter it thoroughly. But really it's worth the bother because you get a beautiful and tasty bird. Thu Dec 07 13:27:31 -0800 2000 1539137 0 christina z 2 1539141 Thanks - do you remember about how long it takes for the oil to heat up? Thu Dec 07 14:15:37 -0800 2000 1539138 0 Lisa Z 3 1539143 Good question - It usually doesn't take more than half an hour for room temperature oil to come to temperature. However, if the air temp is in the teens or single digits and it's windy out, it takes longer. Thu Dec 07 14:19:41 -0800 2000 1539141 0 christina z 4 1539153 Does the oil absorb into the bird turning the only healthy holiday meal into a fatladen treat? IF so I can think of better things to eat fried that I'd prefer. Just curious, I'd never actually try it myself. Thanks. Frank Fri Dec 08 09:43:02 -0800 2000 1539143 0 Frank 5 1539160 No. We measured the oil before and after frying a 14 pound turkey and afterwards we were missing about two tablespoons full. I don't think that's too much oil considering how many servings a bird that size yields. Fri Dec 08 15:47:01 -0800 2000 1539153 0 christina z 6 1539167 but doesn't a certain amount of fat render out of the bird in cooking? I usually wind up with a fair amount of turkey drippings from my roasted bird. Youd expect to see MORE fat in the pot in the end than at the beginning if there was no fat being taken up by the turkey. (tho I wouldnt be complaining) Fri Dec 08 17:08:19 -0800 2000 1539160 0 jen kalb 7 1539191 Maybe that's why the end result is such a juicy, crisp-skinned bird. All the juices and fats that would run out during roasting must be trapped inside the bird. Mon Dec 11 06:55:18 -0800 2000 1539167 0 christina z 8 1539194 As another person mentioned, it occurred to me that all the recipes for fried turkey that I've seen include a step of injecting the turkey with some sort of marinade. Maybe this does as much to keep it juicy as the frying does. Mon Dec 11 14:34:54 -0800 2000 1539191 0 rjka 9 1541091 Where can I buy a fried turkey for Thanksgiving. I live in Fairfax, Virginia. Thu Oct 20 14:40:26 -0700 2005 1539194 0 Diane Ellison 1 1539140 A co-worker had a fried turkey for Thanksgiving at an in law's house and said it was fantastic. Thu Dec 07 13:55:16 -0800 2000 1539137 0 rjka 1 1539142 Here's a link to a great salon.com article connecting a fried turkey with empowerment (and providing some practical advice): Link: http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/1998/11/24feature.html Thu Dec 07 14:18:29 -0800 2000 1539137 0 Lauren 1 1539193 Turkey is turkey no matter how you cook it. A friend of mine fried one a few weeks ago and it was tasty and juicy, but not really any different than what i get out of the oven or off the grill. I inject my bird before smoking it, and i've never dried one out. I inject it with beer and butter, sometimes with spices added. But usually, the process of smoking it adds more flavor than anything. If time is a constraint, i smoke turkey breasts and legs, so they can be cooked in as little as 2 hours. Time is the only real bargain with a fried turkey. It cooks in less than an hour, but heating the oil can take almost that long, so the amount of time saved is rather minor. One must also spend a good deal on oil whenever they want to cook. It cost my buddy about $20 in oil that he would probably never cook again. I don't even spend that on the turkey itself. When i cook with the smoker, i'm working with temps of 200-220 degrees, so i'd have to want to burn myself to get hurt. A vat of boiling oil is a whole nother story, however. Fried turkey is portrayed as some kind of short cut or easy way out, but i don't think so. Charcoal and wood chips for about $5 are a lot less fuss. No expensive oil, no filtering the oil, no hazardous heat, no fear of slashing boiling grease, no delicate operations, etc. I put it in the smoker and it practically cooks itself. When done, i wrap it in foil and put in fridge for dinner the next day. Reheat it whole or cube the meat and simmer in BBQ sauce or whatever i prefer. Letting it sit over night is fine, as it lets the smoky flavor setlle in the bird. It's the way i do it and it works for me. A fryer has no attraction for me, but to each his own. If there's anything we can have preferences on, it's turkey. Mon Dec 11 13:55:47 -0800 2000 1539137 0 andy huse