Deep-Fried Turkey

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2006

Show: Good EatsEpisode: Fry Turkey Fry

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (70)

Cook Time:
45 min
Level:
Difficult
Yield:
6 to 8 servings

Times:

Prep: 15 min
Inactive Prep: 9 hr 0 min
Cook: 45 min
Total:: 10 hr 0 min

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Ingredients

6 quarts hot water
1 pound kosher salt
1 pound dark brown sugar
5 pounds ice
1 (13 to 14-pound) turkey, with giblets removed
Approximately 4 to 4 1/2 gallons peanut oil*
*Cook's Note: In order to determine the correct amount of oil, place the turkey into the pot that you will be frying it in, add water just until it barely covers the top of the turkey and is at least 4 to 5 inches below the top of the pot. This will be the amount of oil you use for frying the turkey.

Directions

Place the hot water, kosher salt and brown sugar into a 5-gallon upright drink cooler and stir until the salt and sugar dissolve completely. Add the ice and stir until the mixture is cool. Gently lower the turkey into the container. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure that it is fully immersed in the brine. Cover and set in a cool dry place for 8 to 16 hours.

Remove the turkey from the brine, rinse and pat dry. Allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes prior to cooking.

Place the oil into a 28 to 30-quart pot and set over high heat on an outside propane burner with a sturdy structure. Bring the temperature of the oil to 250 degrees F. Once the temperature has reached 250, slowly lower the bird into the oil and bring the temperature to 350 degrees F. Once it has reached 350, lower the heat in order to maintain 350 degrees F. After 35 minutes, check the temperature of the turkey using a probe thermometer. Once the breast reaches 151 degrees F, gently remove from the oil and allow to rest for a minimum of 30 minutes prior to carving. The bird will reach an internal temperature of 161 degrees F due to carry over cooking. Carve as desired.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Deep-Fried Turkey
Flo Delmar, NY 11-16-2009
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Brown sugar or not
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I would like to use this recipe for Turkey Day, but am concerned about using brown sugar, based upon other reviews/comments. ... For those of you who have made this without the brown sugar, can you please comment on the taste? ANy other thoughts regarding ommitting the brown sugar?Read more
recipe Deep-Fried Turkey
RG weatherford, TX 11-16-2009
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cottonseed oil vs peanut oil
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

We have fried turkeys for many years. The first few years we used peanut oil. A few years back we switched to cottonseed oil.... I was told it can burn at a oil temp & it is must less expensive. When you frying a 16-20 lb turkey it takes well over 5 gal of oil. I have read recently that cottonseed oil should not be used as a food product. It is sold at sporting good stores along with peanut oil. Does anyone in the food business know if this is true? OK to cook with Cottonseed OIL ???? help - thx.Read more
recipe Deep-Fried Turkey
bob smallville, KS 11-16-2009
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sugar and reusing the oil every year
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I've been frying for about 7 years. The first year I didn't brine and it came out dry. The next year I did a "fancy" brine... with a bunch of ingredients, including apple juice, and the turkey came out black. It wasn't burned but it looked like it. All the sugar in the apple juice, like the brown sugar in Alton's recipe, cooks quickly and turns black. Again, it didn't have that burned taste and was quite good. However, from that point on, I've stuck with simple brines like Alton's kosher salt (2.5 oz) and water (32oz) and the bird has come out fabulous. Regarding the expensive peanut oil, after the oil has cooled off (by the time we're done stuffing ourselves on the great turkey), I line a funnel with cheese cloth (folded over twice) and strain the oil through the filter back into its container. The oil then goes in the freezer for next Thanksgiving. (Don't fill the container all the way since you're freezing it.). I've had the same oil for 7 years and it freezes great and doesn't go rancid. The oil's a little darker than when I originally bought it, but that's not a problem. Just remember to take it out of the freezer several days before Thanksgiving so it'll have time to thaw. It'll still have a turkey-smokey smell to it that's fabulous. Every few years I have to buy a small container of oil to replace the oil that's lost over cooking/straining.Read more
recipe Deep-Fried Turkey
Tim Richfield, MN 11-14-2009
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first time success
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I have never done a friend turkey before, but this was easy and delicious. I used less water in the brine and about the same... amount of salt, so the turkey turned out a little salty, which was actually really good. We made this a few weeks before thanksgiving as a trial and now all my friends are worried that they are going to be eating their moms turkey, while thinking about mine. I am ok with that. We had enough leftovers left to make some great Turkey Noodle soup, delicousRead more
recipe Deep-Fried Turkey
Sharon Amesbury, MA 11-07-2009
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Deep fry two breasts at once?
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

We love this recipe and have used it for one turkey on past Thanksgiving holidays. This year we want to fry two breasts... instead. Is there a reason we could not do both at the same time in the same pot? Would we just stay with the 5/min/lb rule even though there are two breasts?Read more
recipe Deep-Fried Turkey
Nichole St. Louis, MO 07-18-2009
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Brine It!!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I always thought that brinig was a waste of time until Alton described why it worked. I tried it, and WOW! I can't say enough... good things about it. Last year at Thanksgiving, we made it for my husbands family. It was a hit, but we found out that our frier had a hole in it. Since then, we've been putting it in our rotisserie oven, and we aren't disappointed. (The drippings could even be used for a gravy if you want!)Read more