Deep-fried Turkey

[Darkhorse]

We smoke just the turkey breasts. Turkey is a boring meat and needs smokey flavor to be worth eating. Best part of a pig is belly or shoulder.

[Spider]

Thanksgiving is turkey, Christmas is beef or lamb, and ham is for sandwiches. I've always thought it too salty to just eat with a fork.

Deep fried turkey can be amazing...but it has to be done just right. Its way easy to overcook turkey. I've had some really nasty attempts. To the point of crunchiness, even.

Best turkey was the way my grandfather used to do it. He'd build a fire, and burn the wood down into coals, and shovel them into the BBQ where he had the bird on a rotisserie. Just keep adding coals all day until the thing hits 160. Yummy.

[The Dharma Bum]

[Darkhorse]

It's about thanking the Natives for all their nice land.

[foadi]

Anglo thxgiving food is nasty.

[Professor]

Turkey or ham. Ham or turkey. Why not have both? A small spiral-cut ham from Honey Baked Ham and a roasted or fried turkey.

Yes, I've had fried turkeys. They are awesome. Couple tricks to make them even more succulent.

First, brine it. The night before, get a 5-gallon bucket (not a used one with motor oil in it, please!). Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Pour the water into the bucket and dissolve 1lb of salt (kosher, to avoid iodine) and 1lb of brown sugar. If you want to throw in a few cloves or allspice, you can, but I prefer not to. Stick some ice into the bucket to reduce the temperature a bit, then stick in the turkey. Fill with water to cover the turkey. Put the whole thing in the fridge. If you don't have a fridge large enough, use an ice chest and make sure to add ice every few hours (along with a bit more salt and sugar).

The next morning, start injecting the turkey with goodness from a Cajun Injector (or whatever). It's a large syringe that you fill with concentrated flavoring. I usually just inject one breast and one thigh, so that I have 4 different kinds of meat (injected white meat, injected dark, non-injected white, non-injected dark).

Lastly, rub the skin of the turkey with a good spice mixture. Lots of salt, some garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, etc.

Then, fry it up. Makes a wonderful turkey.

[Mr.Bill]

I had deep fried turkey about 12-13 years ago at a friend's house... I liked it so much I went out and bought a fryer, we still use it once in awhile.. Never on Thanksgiving though.. Tradition I guess, the turkey on Thanksgiving has to be stuffed, baked, and dry.

Deep frying a turkey is really good though.. The bird is moister, and cooks much faster.

[PoS]

Turkey is totally boring without condiments like gravy or cranberry sauce. I'll take lamb, BBQ ribs or a good steak over it.

[NAB]

Deep fried turkey is awesome but I've never attempted it myself. I'm more a traditionalist when it comes to cooking my turkey.

I'll just mention my recipe involves rubbing a thyme compound butter under the skin of the turkey. It doesn't suck

[Professor]