Deep Fried Turkey Question

[htc]

Anyone have suggestions on where/how to deep fry a turkey if it rains? We just tried our hand at it this last weekend, as a trial run, turned out really well. All the literature I've read says that you should deep fry out in the open and not in a garage, inside, etc. So if it rains, it'll splatter.

I've thought about doing it in my carport or a my parent's back yard, though their patio has a cover on it (it's pretty high up, but not sure if that's still not ok)...thoughts?

 

[Erik]

Water+Hot Oil...definitely not a good mix...Hmmm, i'm puzzled. I guess we can all pray for dry weather for you.

 

[lyndalou]

I've never fried a turkey before, but my understanding is that it only takes about an hour to do, is this right?

Isn't the reason they recommend doing it outside is because you could have an oil spill ?

I think that if I were really worried about the weather, I'd bag the frying idea and just roast it.

Not much help, huh?

 

[debthecook]

If bad weather is coming your way, I would just make up my mind the night before to bake the turkey. Don't do it in any covered area. You always have next year to try again.

 

[beaulana2]

I have deep fried turkey in the garage kept the garage door open. I put down kitty litter down for any grease spills or you can use floor dry (auto shops use it in the garage). I would not use it on carpet ,unstable, and if the grease does splatter it is a mess to clean up. The day before I deep fry the turkey I put water inthe pot and then put in the turkey that way I can measure how much oil to put in the next day. I have never had a bad oil spill.

 

[ronjohn55]

Aside from the hot oil issue, most turkey burners are propane fired by burners that are absolutely NOT designed for indoor use. They can give off a lot of Carbon Dioxide, and Carbon Monoxide. You need to make sure that you have proper ventilation for those things.

I use them all the time in brewing beer in my garage with the door open, so that should be OK, just follow some common sense rules:

Don't run the burner near gas or gas cans (even empty ones can have vapors)
Keep it on a stable surface (Better to have grease on concrete than have it un unstable cardboard that can tip the burner over, or worse, catch on fire)
If you start to fill dizzy/ill/etc - LEAVE the garage.
Fill the pot with water, and put the turkey in it so you know how much oil you need. Most fires start because people overestimate the needed oil, then add the bird, and the pot overflows.

Lastly, if a fire should start, calmly turn the burner off, then deal with the flames. The worst thing that can happen in a fire situation is to knock hot grease onto the flames, making even BIGGER flames...

John

 

[Raine]

I agree with Ron. Key is to have proper ventalation, non-flammable surfaces and measure the oil correctly.

 

[Psiguyy]

I didn't want to suggest the garage when I first read this topic because there are a lot of things that can go wrong. For instance, if you have a gas heater in the garage and the pilot goes out or there is a leak... Boom! Lots of times, people store flammables in the garage and if there's a leak... Boom!

If you're certain that nothing in the garage will go Boom! do as the others have said, just keep the door up for ventilation.

Make sure you have at least one ABC fire extinguisher handy! 5 Gallons of hot oil + Belching propane burner + 5 gallon propane tank = BOOM!

 

[debthecook]

Every time I see this done on TV (never experienced a deep fried turkey myself on Long Island) I've always see the chef do it in the sunny outdoors. I think thats the only safe way.

 

[htc]

So if it rains, I was thinking of doing it in my apartment complex's carport. It has plenty of venilation, but I am a bit concerned because there is a "ceiling" that is kinda low...basically the ceiling of the carport is made of concrete, it is the "flooring" of other apartments.

I have a fire extinguisher that we use, just in case...we had this on had last weekend when we did our trial run in the courtyard of my apartment complex.

if it rains, think this spot is ok, or is it too low??

 

[htc]

by low ceiling, i mean about 10ft...

 

[Psiguyy]

Well, I tell you. It's not he best thing to do, but we have done it on a commercial range in a commercial kitchen, so my thinking is if you can stand up, it's high enough.

I'd get at least two extinguishers and keep them handy, but not in the fire zone. i.e., an extinguisher in the middle of the fire is of no use to you.