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Deep Frying a Turkey: Safety Tips
More and more Americans are learning how tasty fried Turkey really is, and while it may leave you with succulent meat, make sure you use extreme precaution to avoid going up in flames. Follow these helpful tips to make this Thanksgiving a safe and delicious holiday.
- Make sure to always use your Turkey Fryer outdoors and away from any flammable objects. Keep it a safe distance from buildings, garages, and wooden porches that can all ignite quickly. The extremely hot oil may splatter and burn objects around it.
- Always wear long heat-resistant gloves, long-sleeved shirt or apron, and safety goggles when possible. Once the oil reaches the desired temperature (375ºF), carefully lower your Turkey into the oil while wearing complete protection.
- Most importantly, make sure you completely dry the turkey, inside and out, before you lower it into the hot oil. It is vital you make sure both the outside and the cavity are free from any sort of moisture. The leading cause of restaurant fires is water being added to hot oil in deep fryers. Water, being heavier than oil, sinks to the bottom and immediately boils into steam. The steam quickly expands and forces its way up to the top; it acts like a volcano and splatters oil everywhere. As the splattered oil catches fire to objects around it, make sure you do NOT spray water on it, as it will only encourage the flames.
- To avoid oil spillover, do not overfill the fryer. To test how much oil is needed, place your Turkey in the empty frying pan, and fill it with water to completely cover the Bird. Remove the Turkey and mark the water line. This will be the level of oil you want to use. Make sure you allow at least six inches for expansion and splatter. COMPLETELY DRY THE FRYER before adding oil.
- Make sure you have an all-purpose fire-extinguisher on hand. Never use water to try to put out a grease fire. If the fire increases to more than you can control, call 9-1-1 immediately.
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