With the promise of moist, sweet turkey meat, the deep fryer has become an increasingly popular way to make Thanksgiving dinner. But deep frying a turkey in a pot of boiling hot oil comes with significant fire and burn injury risks.
Every year deep-fryer fires are responsible for more than $15 million in property damage, and countless burn injuries and even deaths, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
If you choose to fry your turkey, closely follow these guidelines and never leave the cooking oil unattended – not even for a second.
- NEVER Deep Fry a Frozen Turkey – “Make sure your turkey is completely thawed out and drained before trying to fry it,” says Swaney. Depending on the size of the turkey it may take up to 3 or 4 days in your refrigerator to thaw a frozen solid turkey. “If you put a frozen turkey in a fryer, there will be a violent reaction which sprays the oil everywhere resulting in a massive fireball. Anything and anyone close to the fryer when this happens gets covered in boiling grease and could be set on fire”, Swaney adds.
- Don’t Let Oil Get Too Hot – “When oil gets around 400-425°F it can auto ignite, which means the oil will catch on fire by itself. Make sure you have a thermometer and are watching the temperature very carefully. If you see your oil smoking, it’s too hot and you need to turn down the heat,” Swaney warns. “Most oils should stay around 350-375°F, but check the label on your oil to see what the best temperature is,” Swaney adds.
- Don’t Use Too Much Oil – A common, and potentially disastrous mistake people make is putting too much cooking oil in their pot. “If you overfill your pot with oil and you lower the turkey in, it will spill over and make contact with the burner resulting in a catastrophic fireball,” Swaney warns. To figure out how much oil you’ll need, put your turkey in the empty cooking pot and fill it up with enough water to cover it, mark the water line, take the turkey out, and use that line to know how much oil your turkey will need.
- NEVER Deep-Fry Indoors, in the garage, or on your deck – If something does go wrong, the inside of your home or garage is the last place you want fire. “Don’t do this in your garage, don’t do this on your wooden patio or anywhere near anything combustible. If you’re going to do it, do it out in your yard or in the middle of your concrete driveway away from anything that could catch on fire. And by all means do not attempt to deep-fry a turkey with this type of cooker inside your house,” Swaney pleads.
Because of the risks associated and the potential for catastrophic outcomes, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) will not certify or recommend using any commercially available deep fryers for home use. Turkey fryers use large amounts of oil at high temperatures, which can cause devastating burns. If you want a fried turkey for your Thanksgiving meal, purchase it from a grocery store, restaurant, or buy a fryer that does not use oil.
WATCH : Culinary Institute of America – How to Deep Fry a Turkey — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=simInxJ_s1s
WATCH : U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission – Turkey Fryer Fire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYvMWIvghnQ
WATCH : National Fire Protection Association – Dangers of Deep Frying Turkey — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjUynq0HXdQ
Aside from the dangers of deep fried turkey, Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires with more than three times the daily average for such incidents. Christmas Day and Christmas Eve ranked second and third, with both having nearly twice the daily average.
Unattended cooking was by far the leading contributing factor in cooking fires and fire deaths. Cooking causes half of all reported home fires and is responsible for two out of every five home fire injuries, and it is the second leading cause of home fire deaths.
Thanksgiving Fire Safety Tips
- Stay in the kitchen when you are cooking on the stove top so you can keep an eye on the food.
- Stay in the home when cooking your turkey and check on it frequently.
- Keep children away from the stove. The stove will be hot, and kids should stay three feet away.
- Make sure kids stay away from hot food and liquids. The steam or splash from vegetables, gravy or coffee could cause serious burns.
- Keep knives out of the reach of children.
- Be sure electric cords from an electric knife, coffee maker, plate warmer or mixer are not dangling off the counter within easy reach of a child.
- Keep matches and utility lighters out of the reach of children.
- Never leave children alone in room with a lit candle.
- Make sure your smoke alarms are working. Test them by pushing the test button.
Normal Fire Department urges you to be extra safe with cooking and hopes you have a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday.
