Turkey fryers can burn, explode (Darwin nominee)

Biloxi Sun-Herald ^ | 11.20.03 | SUSAN CHRISTENSEN

[mhking]

JACKSON - Mississippian George Glenn set out to fry a turkey last holiday season and almost cooked his goose.

After flambéing his bare hand on the turkey fryer's hot lid, Glenn flung the bird into the bubbling grease with a bit too much gusto. "It exploded like a cannon," said the Rankin County resident. "Grease shot up and I got second-degree burns on my forearms and hands."

Glenn doesn't blame the fryer for his misfortune. "You can't idiot-proof the world," he said.

But you can take steps to ensure your holiday menu doesn't land you in the emergency room, says Lauren Fairburn, coordinator for Think First, Methodist Rehabilitation Center's statewide safety and injury prevention program.

Her advice: Use extreme caution around turkey fryers.

"These fryers are very popular, but they also can be quite dangerous," Fairburn said. "Underwriters Laboratories Inc. won't even give any of these cookers its safety seal. The labs' testing revealed too many risks."

Among the labs' concerns: units can easily tip over, spilling hot oil; spillovers can hit the burner/flames, setting the whole unit on fire; lack of thermostat controls means the units can overheat oil to the point of combustion; the sides, lid and handles get dangerously hot.

Given the risks, Fairburn says families might want to go back to cooking their turkey the old-fashioned way. But if you can't forgo the taste of deep-fried turkey, she recommends heeding Underwriters Laboratories' tips for safe turkey fryer use:

Always use turkey fryers outdoors, keeping them a safe distance from buildings and other materials that can burn.

Never use turkey fryers on wooden decks or in garages.

Use fryers on a flat surface to reduce accidental tipping.

Never leave the fryer unattended. Most units do not have thermostats and oil can continue to heat until it catches fire.

Keep children and pets away from fryer during and after use. Oil can stay dangerously hot for hours after use.

Do not overfill cooking pot.

Use well-insulated potholders and oven mitts when touching pot or lid handles. Safety goggles can protect your eyes from oil splatters.

Make sure the turkey is completely thawed and be careful with marinades. Water or ice crystals (from partially thawed birds) introduced into boiling hot fat can cause oil to bubble over, leading to fires or even explosions.

If any part of the turkey fryer catches fire, do not attempt to extinguish. Get everyone away from the fryer and any areas that are endangered and call 911 for help.

For more information about safe cooking or the injury prevention programs offered by Methodist Rehabilitation Center, go to methodistonline.org.

[Sir_Ed]

"My family has been frying turkeys for years now and I finally had to be the one to stand up and say:

"DEEP FRIED TURKEY IS AWEFUL"

You mean it fills you with awe?

If you meant awful, you're the only person I've ever heard who didn't like it!

I just got me a turkey fryer and hope to make it that way, after doing it the old-fashioned way...brining and injecting then roasting...

Ed

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

These dangerous fryers, a PETA conspiracy?

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

"...but I wouldn't want to make a habit of it..."

Me either. I think I'll pass. Ignorance is bliss, especially regarding food like this.

[Ichneumon]

but I'm just imagining how KFC turns the cardboard box completely clear with all the drippings. Ugh.

KFC is covered in batter, and the porous batter holds a lot of the oil. A fried turkey is *not* battered, and the oil rolls off the bare skin when you take it out.

You don't get much more oil than you would from the oil-or-butter basting of a regular roasted turkey, but the bird is a lot more juicy and crispy brown on the outside.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Sweet! Now when you coming down for a fry?

[Springman]

LOL!!!

[sadimgnik]

Well, Deep-Fried Ice-Cream's been the 'traditional' dessert at Chinese restaurants here in Australia for as long as I can remember, and the deep-fried battered egg is not all that different to a Scotch Egg (For the uninitiated, that's a boiled egg wrapped in minced beef, coated in breadcrumbs and then fried - Yummy!)

Sadim

[EUPHORIC]

At first this thread was funny! I even commented that rather then looking at Turkey Fryers as dangerous we should instead start a new "extreme sport" - TURKEY LAUNCHING!!! But the more I read the more my mouth watered and I am now the proud owner of a new Wal-Mart $48.72 Turkey Frier and more peanut oil then I've ever seen in one place at the same time!!! Got a couple of Turkeys so if one ends up on its way to another galaxy I can try again! Got a few more in the deep freeze... Tempted to use an engine hoist from a distance and drop one into the pot frozen and video the results! We shall see how the day goes and decide tomorrow!

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Good job! Hey from a variety of sources, here are a few tips:

The fryer I bought said to heat the oil to 325°. But after a few birds, I found that was not hot enough. And after talking to some friends who owned fryers, they said 350°. And I have found that to be an excellent temp.

And when you bring the temp up, get it to where it stabilizes; mine is touchy and wants to go over 350°. The times it has, I have had problems with boil over or poor quality. And here is a cool thing: when you bring the temp to 350 and drop the bird in, you don't have to readjust the flame; leave it at the same flame level you had it to get it to 350 (or whatever temp you use). Dropping the bird in cools the oil, but if you haven't touched the flame, then by the time it reaches the original temp it was when you lowered the bird in, that will also be about the time it's done!

Make sure it is thawed completey, and as dry as possible. Be sure to put it in facing the right direction or it will be like a geyser!!

3 to 4 minutes per lb. is the time, but use a thermomoeter in the thigh, and also (this is what the Savannah boys told me, I didn't believe it at first): it will "float" when done. And I have found that it floats about the same time it has cooked at 3-1/2 min./lb and the temp has returned to original level! Those 3 things seem to happen in conjunction with one another.

I get some cheese cloth from the grocery store and when the oil has cooled enough, I pour the fryer oil thru a large funnel lined with the cloth back into the oil jug. I have only had to change oil twice in 2 years - and yes, it's still fresh.

I would never have beleived it when I first heard about this years ago. But now that I have tried it, I wouldn't eat it any other way, and I cook one about every other month.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Yes! Good job!

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Hey if you really want an explosion, heat it up to 425 and drop it in. Been there, done that, coated the pavement with peanut oil. It was bad. But, it never caught fire!!

[Lurkd Long Enough]

The ChiComs are flooding the market with inferior turkey fryers sold through wal mart and home depot that the average jackass is using to burn down his home.

They probably had a role in starting the whole fired turkey trend. Was it through a payment to martha stewart?

[Lurkd Long Enough]

Put the fryer on a level concrete pad away from the house and keep an eye on it and everything is fine

This is important.

The local news keeps showing a teaser of a moron who tried to fry a turkey on his deck, and the grease boils over. It catches fire and his whole house goes up in flames.

[doug from upland]

Darn. Darn. Darn. Hillary is going to Iraq for Thanksgiving. I was hoping she was going to fry a turkey.

[doug from upland]

Darn. Darn. Darn. Hillary is going to Iraq for Thanksgiving. I was hoping she was going to fry a turkey.

[aberaussie]

You must watch E.R!!! That was the grossest thing I've seen! (BTW -- Dr. Romano is ALIVE)

From the website that summarizes each week's story:

Identity Crisis 2003-12-04 calendar Two distinct cultures collide when Neela treats two Amish teenagers involved in a car accident who are exploring the outside world to determine if they want to return to the reclusive society while Dr. Corday and a few others mourn the loss of a talented colleague. Elsewhere, Sam clashes with sympathetic Dr. Kovac when he pays too much attention to her trouble-prone teenaged son Alex while Dr. Lewis is pained when an unconscious 5-year-old girl cannot be traced to any parent or guardian. In addition, Dr. Pratt scopes out the beautiful Valerie who is visiting her nervous brother Dr. Gallant.

[CholeraJoe]

The greatest danger occurs from overfilling the fryer with oil. No more than half full. I've got seven injected and spiced. The first one drops in 90 minutes and I'll be done in 3-4 hours.

Good luck.

[illiac]

Good luck on your turkey and new fryer. Once the oil hits 350 degrees, just slowly lower the bird into the oil - take your time. It will bubble a lot. Once in 3 minutes per pound and done! UMMMMMM good. Happy Thanksgiving!

[AGreatPer]

I have a plan. I am going to a hunting camp where everyone knows how to do this. I’ll watch and learn while shooting animals with my camera only. I’m in charge of frying the oysters which I am good at.