Sunday, December 18, 2011

George's Famous Turkey Fry

For the past 8 years, we have been deep frying our Thanksgiving Day Turkey.
Our daughter and her husband introduced us to this method.
We observed and invited the innovation with skepticism and caution.
The results were excellent. Dark meat and white meat cooked evenly.
Nothing was dry. Contrary to common comment, nothing was oily.
Crisp and Brown on the outside. Moist and tasty on the plate.
I went out to buy a cooker shortly thereafter.
Other benefits, It only takes 40-45 minutes
And the oven was free for cooking side dishes

This year we did two 15 lb. turkeys again.
Both were cooked perfectly.
3 minutes per pound.
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Please note that this can be a dangerous process. 350 degree oil will cause severe skin burns. Keep the kiddies locked up in the house. Don't do this under a roof. Have a fire extinguisher on hand. An open area is the best place. If it rains, make a loose fitting aluminum foil cover to keep the rain from getting into the pot. Don't use a lid. The steam must escape.
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At the request of some friends, I took photos.
Recipe:
-First, I brine the turkeys overnight in a solution of salt water, sugar, vegetable stock, and ice.
-Rinse brine off thoroughly. Dry turkey. Wet turkeys spatter more.
-Heat 9 inches of peanut oil( high smoke point) to 350 degf
-Carefully lower the turkey with drumsticks -upward, on its holder into the oil.
-A broken hockey stick seems to do the trick
-Adjust burner to keep oil temperature at 350 degf
-Put splash collar in place. ( home made from aluminum.
-Mark start time. cook for 40 to 45 minutes (3 min. per lb.)
-Carefully remove. (It is easier to remove. no spattering)

1)- The setup: Propane tank, Bayou burner and tall pot. You can buy these kits at Lowe's or Home Depot. It takes about 3 pounds of propane to cook two turkeys. On the right is the peanut oil. I buy this at Costco. It's a plastic container that comes in a box. 4.6 gallons;$40. You will need most of it. Peanut oil has a high smoke point.

2)- The Oil: Over the years I have learned the 9 inches (deep) of Peanut Oil works. The first time you fry a turkey, use the water method to get the right fill-up. An overflow can cause a flare-up. Before applying heat, put the turkey in the pot on its stand. Fill with water until the turkey is covered. Remove turkey. measure water depth. write it down. DRY the turkey as much as possible. 3)- Heat the oil to 350 degf. This can take about 15 minutes. Set burner to maximum. Keep an eye on it.

Dispense the unused (clean) oil into a clean container. You may have a gallon of peanut oil. I save my old Olive Oil containers for this. You can use this in the kitchen over the next year.


4)- Find two volunteers: Get a broken hockey stick preferably one with sentimental value. The stick keeps everybody at a safe distance. Use the hockey stick to slowly lower the turkey into the hot oil. Notice that the turkey is drum sticks-up. The hole in the body cavity is larger and therefore will vent steam better.

5) Ease the turkey into the pot. Note how these two experienced turkey fryers focus on the task at hand, No texting is permitted during the submersion process. The surface water on the turkey causes violent boiling.

6)- Almost submerged.


7)- Submerged: Undo the hook. After submerging, the spattering will settle down to a hearty boil.


8)- Replace the thermometer. Make sure it's in the oil. I made a collar to help contain the spattering. Just a piece of aluminum fit to the pot and pop-riveted.

If you do this on a driveway, spread an inch of sand on the ground to make it easy to clean-up.


Now watch your temperature. the temperature will dip because of the turkey. When it gets back to 350 cut the valve back to about half flow. Whatever, keep it at 350 no higher. Check it continuously.


9)-Cook for about 40-45 minutes. 3 minutes per pound of turkey.

































10)- Remove from pot. You can do this by yourself. very little spatter since the water is all cooked off. Wear oven mittens. You may need to touch the turkey.
10)-Results: Crispy and brown. Line a large plate or broiler pan with heavy duty aluminum foil. Remove from cook stand. let cool for 15-20 minutes before carving. Cut a piece or two to taste.



11)- When done cooking, turn the gas off. Let the used (dirty) oil cool to a safe temperature. After cooling, Get a large funnel and pour the used oil back into the container. You can use it again if you store it in a cool place. (I don't. )




Uncle George





















Saturday, July 2, 2011

Friday,Saturaday , July 1, 2, 2011

We made it to Russia. Will we make it back?
Yesterday, we toured the Grand Palace of Peteroff.
The palace was magnificent. Gold leaf on much of the wood work and statuary.
The grounds were beautiful just like the weather to which we have been accustomed.
(I'll post some photos later as the ship changes $.75 per minute for Internet access.)


Last night, we went to the ballet and saw a full length production of "Swan Lake".
The dancing and music were excellent.
The facility had no air conditioning. We cooked. Normally with maximum temperatures of 75 F, there is no need for AC; but, it's been over 85 F for the past few days in Scandinavia with clear skies.


The freaky part it the length of days. We returned to the ship at 11:00 PM and it was still bright outside. The ship's advisory TV station says that sunset was at 11:20PM with sunrise at 4:40 AM. We are the eastern end of the time zone so the sunset is later. They use Daylight Savings Time. Somehow that does seem to make much sense when the daylight lasts 20 hours.

Today, we will be going on a canal tour of St. Petersburg. This is some place with 4 million people here. It is quite busy. Not as many bicycles as Stockholm, Copenhagen , or Helsinski.
You will be happy to know that they do drive Fords, Chevys, as well as Opels, VW's, Mazdas, Nissans, Hundyai's, and Toyotas. None of which seems to be dominant.

More to come. George & Diane

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Still in Copenhagen

Last day in Copenhagen.
We board the ship this afternoon at 2PM.
This time we plan to go on the cheap.
Our plan is to avoid a 350 Krona taxi cab ride for a 140 Krona train ride.

Yesterday, we walked the to city from the Little Mermaid statue to Tivoli.
Of course, a few wrong turns added to the mileage. My feet are still in pain.
Tivoli is a very nice park-like amusement park. I understand it may be the second oldest in the world. Check it out on wikipedia. Admission 1 USD = 6 Krona.
Shows, restaurants, and a few scarey rides where in full swing.

Club sandwich, salad, two drinks along the waterfront, 75 USD.

This town is bicycle crazy. There a were a least two hundred bikes parked in front a depatment store.
I'll post pictures later.

George & Diane

Friday, June 24, 2011

THE TRIP BEGINS - on to Denmark

Thursday proved lucky. Sometimes USAirways comes through. We arrived at the airport early which may have helped us get upgraded to Envoy class. Wow! This is the first time that I sat in a power seat on an airplane. This baby had a powered foot rest, powered recliner, powered head reast, powered lumbar support-two places, and a powered foot rest.

Next came free food and drinks. A choice of entrees. very good.

Each seat was equipped with a Monitor with a selection of movies , etc.
The idea is to get sleep on this flight so that you can get back on the clock the next day.
Denmark and Frankfurt are 6 hours different.
I watched three movies instead on my personal screen. (no click flick compromises.)
This was the best USAIRWAYS experience I ever had.
I still have a tear in my eye from the memory.

We arrived in Frankfurt for our transfer to Lufthansa. Since USAirways could not give us boarding passes, we faced an uncertain path to Copenhagen. We have an hour and 30 minutes to make it.
First mistake, we went through customs and entered Germany. Later we found that we could have stayed inside the security zone and walked directly to the connecting gate. Walk, walk, walk, and walk some more. This is when Diane discovered how heavy her carry-on was. We grabbed a luggage cart and kept walking to the Lufthansa end of the terminal. I truly believe that the last gate is in Denmark. If you ever walked Atlanta, or the Phoenix airports, you only have had a warm-up. Frankfurt is long, long.
After a failed attempt at the check-in Kiosk, we tried people check-in. It worked. With boarding passes in hand, off to security. US security is tighter than German security. You don't have to take your shoes off. no pat down or body scans. "Zee papers pleez."
After walking from A1 to A36, we arrived at the gate. Lufthansa's plane was spotless.
Germans are often accused of being regimented. I found that if you sit straight and keep pulling on your seat belt, the flight attendents won't scold you with stern glances.

One hour to Copenhagen. 40 minutes waiting for baggage. Lufthansa, how embarássing.
A short walk to the Airport Hilton. very nice.

Last night, we did the Metro to Copenhagen, Kognens Nytorv Stop. Walked the town. Nice place. Street side restaurants, boats, a Tango club was having an outdoor event. They were dumping sand in the park for a volley ball tournament. Bicycles everywhere.
2 Coffee lattes for 74 Danish Krona. On Kr equals .17 USD. (No dollar sign on this Danish keyboard.) I found it hard to hand over a paper 100 for coffee and get what looked like 2 quarters for change.

Breakfast is included at the hotel. Free food is a good thing.

More to come, George.
note spell check is set to Danish. my apologies for my missses.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Sailing the Chesapeake May 2011

The crew is ready.

The trip is funded.

The yacht has been contracted.

The beer has been selected.


Crew: All sailors from last year have returned for this year's cruise.



Course: This year, we cruise from Annapolis, past Thomas Shoal, around Drum Point to Solomons. Zahniser's Marina is our final destination on Friday, May 13.

On Saturday, Sweetwater will venture to Cambridge to engage in "Second Saturday".

From Cambridge, the next destination will be St. Michael's Marina.

Monday will find the crew navigating back to Annapolis.


The Yacht: This one is the grandest yet. Sweetwater is a 50 foot Jeanneau. We're hoping the west wind will show us a quick trip to Solomons. With a wet length of 48 ft, we should be able to achieve a hull speed of 9 knots with a 10-15 knot wind on the beam reach.


I am hopeful that we can sleep 8 with more comfort than on past yachts.


The Beer:

Smithwicks, Yeungling Lager, Sam Adams, Corona, New Castle Brown Ale.

Bottles only, no lite beer!


Best Regards, Captain Stuckbottom


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