Everything is Better Deep Fried
Ok. So today Ryan emails me at work to ask me if I want to come over for supper. What's on the menu? Deep-fried turkey. I was like "is that some kind of code that really means you are going to buy a bucket of chicken at KFC?" Apparently, the answer to that question was a resounding no!The deep-fried turkey was actually Mike's baby (not literal baby...in the sense of pet project). I picked up Ryan after work and on the way back to his place, we made a quick detour at the grocery store. Mike only had two 3L bottles of vegetable oil and we needed one more.
So, back at the house, Mike is trying to determine how much oil we will need. We do this by putting the turkey into the giant pot and then filling up the space around it with water. By this method, we discover that 9L of oil is not going to be nearly enough. Might I add, we did the measuring with the plastic bottom off a 3-hole punch because of a distinct lack of rulers in the household.
Ryan and I head back to the store. There, we purchase four additional 3L bottles and 2 packages of gravy. The man who rings in our groceries asks us if we plan to mix them together to make a delicious meal. This of course sends me into another fit of hysterical laughter. This whole "deep fry a turkey" thing all seems so foreign to me, and, yet, it is also an exciting adventure.
Back to the house we go (with a quick detour at Blockbuster, which is selling previously viewed dvds for buy 2 get 1 free). While we were gone, Mike has cleaned up the whole kitchen and rigged some sort of skewar system which the turkey is now spiked on.
The oil now goes into the pot and it put outside on the burner to heat. We discover that somehow we miscalculated the amount of oil needed but figure we can't be that far off the mark.
Finally, the oil is heated. Mike fetches the skewared turkey for the official dunking into the boiling oil. This is where we again discover that we had no idea how much oil we really needed. Mike has the turkey lowered part way into the giant pot and the oil is boiling frantically and splashing all over the place. Miraculously, Mike survives without any 3rd degree burns.
A metal bowel and ladle are then retrieved from the kitchen to remove some of the oil from the top of the pot. Then, a pot is retrieved from the kitchen to remove even more of the oil. Apparetly, our estimate was a little more than a little off.
Once that situation got under control, we just let the whole thing boil around out there for about 40 minutes or so.
I have to admit, I was an unbeliever. I thought, surely after all the oil buying and whatnot, this turkey is not even going to turn out and we are going to end up having turkey à la Griswold family Christmas. But no! A grand total of approximately 40 minutes later, voilà! A deep-fried turkey was born from the pot of oil, crispy and delicious.
Forty minutes! This leads me to wonder why anyone would bother cooking a turkey in the oven! Christmas dinner? Thanksgiving? Deep fry the turkey! So fast, so easy (?) and so delicious. Kudos definitely go out to Mike, chef of the evening.
As for the plan (à la Palmer) to cover the oil in the pot with saran wrap and store it in the garage for daily use, I am not sure I can get on board. How often do you hear the words "mmm...rancid oil..." Not very often, which is exactly my point.
However, I can now sleep easy knowing that my theory that everything tastes better deep fried has been proven true. I must say, I have not spent an evening of hours of hsyterical laughter with such a delicious ending in a long time. Long live the deep-fried turkey!
Hopefully, the pictures and/or video of this exiting evening of fun will soon be posted on Palmer's World.
posted by Dish @ 11:00 PM
3 Comments:
that is an awesome adventure! too funny
Very funny. You had quite the adventure.
Things like this are often akin to "I bought these homemade fireworks on the side of the road and I'm going to light them when I get home 'cause it's the fourth of July."
Yet, miraculously, you just wound up with turkey fantasticness and no trip to the emergency toom. Highly impressed.
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