Deep Frying Turkeys in Bulk

[Djhenry]

Hi guys, My name is Darius and I am new to this forum.

I am trying to do research on a new side job/hobby of mine. I am interested in selling deep fried turkeys a few times a year to try to make some extra money to help pay for graduate school. I love to cook so when I found out about the interest level people had in deep fried turkeys I thought I might be able to make this work. I have a very good business sense about me and don't jump into anything half way, I wanted to find out from reliable sources what would be a good method of producing these turkeys in bulk.

My primary concern is what method would you use to defrost a large number of turkeys safely and in what type of container etc. Because this would be one of the issues effecting how many you could make in a day.

How long between cooking to sale should I accept before I lose quality of the product. i.e. If I don't have it pre sold waiting to be picked up how long in advance could I keep them "shelved" waiting to be sold. This would also effect production volume.

I would with a guy who's friend fried 250 turkeys I haven't had a chance to ask over what period of time but it doesn't seem to me like these things should sit on a shelf for very long before you lose the whole taste factor of frying it in the first place. I realise that most would have to be rewarmed in the oven also.

I'm just trying to work out some of the logistics of this to see if it's practicle the way I would like to do it.

Thank you and sorry for such a long post.

Darius.

[Andy M.]

Around here, cooked turkeys have to be pre-ordered so you always know how many you have to cook and when they will be picked up.

The safest way to defrost a quantity of frozen turkeys is in a large fridge (commercial). I suppose you could buy fresh turkeys and eliminate the problem.

[GotGarlic]

Hi, Darius. Welcome to DC

Unless you have an outlet for selling these that you're working with, such as a restaurant or grocery store, I wouldn't invest the money and time in pre-buying and cooking fried turkeys; I would suggest making them to order and specifying a lead time. Also, depending on your state's laws and regulations regarding food safety, you may need to rent space in a commercial kitchen and/or be certified in safe food handling, so you'll need to look into that.

The first thing you need to do, really, is develop a business plan. You need to figure out your food cost, preparation cost, and overhead (advertising, business cards, etc.) in order to determine how much to charge so you will make a profit. There may be a finance professor at your school who can help you out. Not sure where you're located, but in the U.S., there's an organization called SCORE - Service Corps of Retired Executives - which consists of people who volunteer to advise new business owners.

Hope this helps.

[jennyema]

I think your primary concern should be talking to a lawyer who can help you through all the legal hoop-jumping this would entail.

Then an insurance agent to buy both property and liability insurance.

Then to Serve Safe to learn about food safety. Please do not get your food safety information on something like this from a message board.

[Djhenry]

Thank you for all of the replies, this is why I came hear to have a sounding board to try to work through questions and concerns of doing the process. I have already determined a ball park figure of the costs of operation (which will be further hammered out if it becomes a go), I figure advertisement would be mostly social media (fb, twitter, etc.), and frying some sample birds for tasters and maybe a new paper ad. I am not thinkg a long the lines of having a industrial assembly line undertaking hear. I think if I could do maybe 100-200 or something like that it would be great. But it all falls under feasibilty, if you can't physically produce enough to meet demand then you are limited by your capcity.

Jennyema, your statement about property and liability insurance, was that assuming that this wasn't being done from home? Because of course I have property insurance on my house. The liability insurance would that be for incase some got sick from the food? I have liability insurance also because my primary job is being a nurse.

I want to say thanks again for all of the comments made. I can take the food safety course because we obivously want to work between the lines.

[powerplantop]

Originally Posted by Djhenry

Jennyema, your statement about property and liability insurance, was that assuming that this wasn't being done from home? Because of course I have property insurance on my house. The liability insurance would that be for incase some got sick from the food? I have liability insurance also because my primary job is being a nurse.

Doing this from home could result in big fines from the local health department. You would need to make sure that your liability insurance would cover this. If its not legal (most places it is not legal to cook for the pubic in your home) then your liability insurance most likely will not cover you.

[jennyema]

If you sell things to others you generally need commercial insurance.

Most homeowners policies don't cover you if you prepare and sell food from your house.

Insurance is VERY important, particularly in your situation with poultry and hot oil

Like if someone sued you because you held the turkey too long at insufficient temp. I'd you don't have insurance, you are likely FUC@ED for a very long time.

Similarly your homeowners will likely deny a claim if you are running a business .

[PrincessFiona60]

Your Nursing Liability Insurance will NOT cover a lawsuit for making and selling food. It only covers your actions as a nurse, not a purveyor of foodstuffs.

[CWS4322]

Welcome to DC! Selling food prepped at home can be a very slippery slope. You will need to research local and state laws. There might be other ways to supplement your income such as tutoring undergrads, working as a private care nurse, offering to help with holiday cooking in the person's home (not sure about that one--but I would think one could do that...maybe not), at this time of year, offering to help people with the decorating (and undecorating)/baking/cleaning in preparation for the holidays, cleaning after a party, etc.

[Djhenry]

thanks for all of the comments, which was the reason why I came hear to start with to get a good sounding board to bounce ideas off of. Basically the jist that I am getting from you guys with that it is very prohibitive to do this on a small scale such as what I would be doing. With commercial property (ironic because one of the 1st rules is don't cook deep fried turkeys in a enclosed space), commercial insurance, etc. this operation would need to be much more productive to make it worth wild.

Btw in my grad school it is basically impossible to work any real length of time usually 40-60 hr weeks. So I was looking for something I could do during our breaks, around holidays and such.

Thanks,

again for your help.

Darius

[CraigC]

An "obvious attractant" like the smell of wood smoke and "Q" could bring around a few "neighbors". A sample of ribs, shoulder, pulled pork or brisket might just have them asking if you just might have some room next go round to slip something on for them. Contributions for fuel and libations are always excepted of course! If you catch my drifting smoke. BTW, a turkey or two might just find their way onto the smoker.

[Palladini]

Your statement on smoking a turkey outdoors only, is not quite right. See - http://www.masterbuilt.com/fryers

[Mad Cook]

Originally Posted by powerplantop

Doing this from home could result in big fines from the local health department. You would need to make sure that your liability insurance would cover this. If its not legal (most places it is not legal to cook for the pubic in your home) then your liability insurance most likely will not cover you.

I'm not sure how it works in the US but over here you would have to have your kitchen/cooking area adapted to bring it in line with legal food safety regulations - eg two sinks - one for washing your equipment (and one for washing your foodstuffs if necessary) plus a sink for washing your hands, surfaces must be up to a designated standard to ensure that they are easily clean, disinfectable and unlikely to harbour bacteria, fungal growths, etc., two 'fridges - one for raw meat and fish and one for everything else ..... the list goes on. And you'd have to have regular inspections of your premises.

It's a wonder that anyone starts a food prep business from home. It was the bureaucracy that eventually stopped me working from home with food. And in the USA where people sue at the drop of a hat it must be a nightmare.

[Mad Cook]

Totally off topic but I keep asking myself why you would want to deep-fry a turkey. Would it be coated in batter or bread crumbs or just fried as is? Wouldn't it be awfully greasy?

Mind you, they deep-fry Mars bars in Scotland. (Potters off scratching head in disbelief.)

[Palladini]

Originally Posted by Mad Cook

Totally off topic but I keep asking myself why you would want to deep-fry a turkey. Would it be coated in batter or bread crumbs or just fried as is? Wouldn't it be awfully greasy?

Mind you, they deep-fry Mars bars in Scotland. (Potters off scratching head in disbelief.)

If you have never had a deep fried turkey, I am sad for you. They are thousands of percent better than any oven cooked turkey. Nothing coating the outside is allowed, but the inside, now that is up to you. Research deep fried turkey and you will see, they sell flavour kits you inject or you can make your own. about 3 minutes per pound, a 20 Lb turkey will take an hour to cook. If you like the dressing, make it from a box. Crispy chicken skin, delicious.

How to Deep Fry a Turkey

[Oldvine]

In my area there are commercial kitchens that can be "rented" for in season products. A commercial kitchen would have large freezers, refrigerators and stoves for your project. My friend uses a commercial kitchen for the short season of a certain fruit to make jam that she sells to specialty tourist shops. That might work for your project. Take orders, get the turkeys, cook them and deliver them as ordered. For your short term it might be hard to find a place that also has smoking equipment. To do many turkeys, you surely would need a commercial facility since even doing one turkey takes space for the equipment. Home prepared food sold commercially is not allowed in my area. We can't even make cookies for a school bake sale, they must be made in the school's kitchen.

[Addie]

With all the information you have received so far, you are at least a year from even seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and realizing your idea. And with school and nursing, I don't see you finding time to give this idea your attention on a full time basis. A lot of states require you to take a course in food safety for starters.

The best advice you have received so far is "get a lawyer" and "make a business plan."

[CraigC]

Originally Posted by Palladini

Your statement on smoking a turkey outdoors only, is not quite right. See - http://www.masterbuilt.com/fryers

Who made a statement about SMOKING turkey outdoors only? Which, BTW, is the only place to SMOKE anything, unless of course you have the hood and vent fan from hell. One that would require wearing hearing protection.

Your link has nothing to do with SMOKING turkey at all!?! Just saying.

[Palladini]

Originally Posted by CraigC

Who made a statement about SMOKING turkey outdoors only? Which, BTW, is the only place to SMOKE anything, unless of course you have the hood and vent fan from hell. One that would require wearing hearing protection.

Your link has nothing to do with SMOKING turkey at all!?! Just saying.

what? In post #10, Djhenry wrote " (ironic because one of the 1st rules is don't cook deep fried turkeys in a enclosed space)"

Maybe if you had read the entire thread, you would have seen this.

[CraigC]

Originally Posted by Palladini

Your statement on smoking a turkey outdoors only, is not quite right. See - http://www.masterbuilt.com/fryers

Does that help?