COOK YOUR TURKEY IN COTTONSEED OIL THIS HOLIDAY SEASON...
Frying a whole turkey might
seem a little intimidating at first, especially if you are not
an experienced outdoor cook. However, with a little care and
caution, you can get very good results your first time out.
So that your turkey is done
perfectly and safely, included are recommendations on what
equipment you should use when doing this for the first time. As
you can see from this page, please rely heavily on an internal
temperature probe to determine cooking times and temperatures.
Caution: Frying a turkey involves
handling hot oil. You need to be careful and take your time.
Please follow the steps provided, and take all possible
precautions to prevent injury. Steps where you should be
especially careful your first time around are marked with
caution symbol.
#1. Defrost the turkey completely
and wash thoroughly. Using a marinade is optional. If you would
like to use one, either purchase a commercial turkey marinading
product, or create your own.
#2. Inject the marinade into the
turkey using a turkey injector kit and let the turkey sit,
preferably overnight. Also, it is recommended that you
"season" the pot before use. Pour a small amount of
vegetable oil in the pot and spread it around with a paper towel
until the entire bottom and sides are coated.
#3. Pour COTTONSEED oil into a
turkey frying pot. Make sure you leave enough room for your
turkey so that the oil will be just enough to cover it
completely during frying. Do not overfill. Cottonseed oil is
best since it's
stable and gives a good flavor to the turkey.
#4. Set the pot on your burner
and start heating it. For best results, use a temperature probe
to control the temperature of the oil and avoid guess work.
Bring the oil up to a temperature of 360 F. A
mechanical thermometer may be used, but a digital one is best.
Try using an internal temperature probe specially designed for
turkey frying and other types of outdoor cooking such as
grilling, smoking, etc.
**Turn off the
burner before you do this next step to be safe. Also, remove the
temperature probe or mechanical thermometer to give yourself
plenty of room to work.**
#5. Put the turkey onto the
frying rack. Wearing a heavy glove to protect your hand from
spills, slowly lower the turkey into the hot oil. Lower the bird
very slowly to prevent accidents. Your oil temperature will drop
significantly once the turkey has been fully immersed. You will
be using your mechanical thermometer or temperature probe to get
the oil back up to the correct temperature, so place it in the
oil at this time.
#6. Turn the burner back on. Make
sure you bring the oil back up to 360 F. Turn the burner high
until the oil reaches 350 F, and then ease down to a steady 360
F.
If you are using an internal
temperature probe, insert it into the center of the dark meat
area of the thigh. Be sure not to leave the tip of the probe
near a bone.
Try cooking 3.5 to 4 minutes per
pound frying time. With an internal probe, you can cook by
internal temperature and not worry about per pound cooking
times. If cooking with our internal probe, set the alarm to 180
F for internal temperature and wait until it goes off.
As soon as the internal
temperature is 180 F you're done and the turkey is ready to eat.
Be as careful getting the turkey
out of the pot as you were putting it in. First, turn the burner
off and remove the probe. Then carefully lift the turkey out
using your glove. Remember, the oil is still hot.
Enjoy and encourage others to buy
cottonseed oil.
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