November (Charles)

(This is what can happen if you cook a deep fried turkey the wrong way)

(This is what can happen if you cook it the right way)

Deep Fried Thanksgiving Turkey

1 Unthawed Turkey (8-14 pounds is preferable)
Lowry’s Seasoning Salt
Peanut Oil

Remove the turkey from the wrapper. Be sure to save the label that indicates the weight of the turkey. Use the turkey’s weight to compute the total frying time. Thaw the turkey completely. Remove the neck and giblets from the two body cavities.

Heat the oil to 350 degrees in a large deep fryer. Make sure you place the deep fryer, burner, and gas tank away from the house or garage and put a flattened cardboard box underneath. This can be a somewhat dangerous process, and you do not want your house burning down on Thanksgiving. While the oil is heating, cover the turkey in Lowry’s seasoning salt. Remove the wire or plastic truss that holds the legs in place (if applicable). Do not stuff turkeys for deep frying. The trick for getting the perfect deep fried turkey is to fry the turkey for 3 minutes per pound. So if you have an 8 pound turkey, fry it for 24 minutes. Slowly lower the turkey into the deep fryer. Gather the family around the fryer. Crack some beers. Tell some stories. After the allotted time remove the turkey, allow to cool, and then get your grandfather, or father, or mother if you house is run by a matriarchy to slice up the turkey. Make sure you pick at the skin while they are doing this process because there is nothing better than hot deep fried turkey skin.

Gastrography
Food is certainly less exciting when eaten alone, and this dish is the perfect communal gathering meal. For as long as I can remember, my family has cooked deep fried turkey for Thanksgiving. While fried turkey is one the best thing I have ever eaten, it is the process of cooking the turkey that makes this dish even more enjoyable. My Dad is always in charge, and he takes his task very seriously. The three places that we always have Thanksgiving (switching between the three randomly each year) are my parents’ house in Mt. Pleasant, my grandmother’s house in Spartanburg (Moo), and our lake house in Tuxedo, North Carolina. I have come to realize through the writing of this cookbook that space is a very important element to food. This meal certainly would be completely different for me if the family did not ritually gather around the turkey fryer with our fold up chairs to watch the frying of the bird every Thanksgiving. Dad makes sure he puts down a large parameter of cardboard around the fryer every year because “You can never be too careful. People’s garages burn down all the time because they don’t know how to properly fry a turkey.

One of the main problems with frying a turkey is the question of what to do with the oil after you are done. Another one of my favorite turkey rituals was to drive with dad to some remote location the day after Thanksgiving and dump out the oil on the side of the road. I would always imagine what kinds of animals were going to enjoy our turkey tasting oil leftovers.