As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, we’ve been recipe testing to finalize our menu, and this smoke-fried turkey and two sides are must-haves for next week. With the added simplicity of Safeway’s Fresh Pass delivery service, we had our groceries on our doorstep in the morning and dinner on the table in the afternoon. Our plans for Thanksgiving are set, and we’re excited to welcome family and friends for a memorable meal cooked on the Traeger.
Deep frying a turkey is a popular cooking method for holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter The end result is a turkey with crispy, golden brown skin and moist, tender meat inside But what if you want to take your turkey up a notch and add smoky flavor too? Let’s explore whether you can deep fry a smoked turkey and how to do it properly.
Is It Possible to Deep Fry a Smoked Turkey?
The short answer is yes, you can absolutely deep fry a smoked turkey! It may sound a bit unusual, but it’s a great way to get the best of both cooking methods – smoky flavor infused into the meat along with ultra crispy skin from deep frying.
Smoking the turkey first allows the wood smoke to penetrate deep into the meat, giving it that delicious smoky barbecue essence. Then deep frying crisps up the skin beautifully and locks in all the moisture The combination of smoking and deep frying results in an unbelievable turkey that looks impressive and tastes even better
Safety Tips for Deep Frying a Smoked Turkey
While deep frying a smoked turkey can take your holiday meal to new heights, there are some important safety factors to keep in mind:
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Use a turkey fryer designed for turkeys – Do not use a small deep fryer meant for french fries. You need a large turkey fryer with enough oil capacity to submerge the turkey fully. This prevents oil spillovers.
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Fry outside – Deep fry the turkey outdoors away from your house. The high heat poses a fire risk. Never leave the fryer unattended.
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Monitor the oil temperature – Heat the oil between 350-375°F. Use a thermometer to regularly check the temp. Overheating can cause a fire.
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Thaw completely – Ensure the turkey is fully thawed before frying. Any ice crystals can cause hot oil to splatter dangerously.
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Dry thoroughly – Pat the turkey dry inside and out before frying. This prevents excessive bubbling and splattering.
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Don’t overfill – Leave at least 4 inches of space between the oil and the pot rim to prevent overflow.
Step-by-Step Guide to Deep Frying a Smoked Turkey
Follow these steps for perfect results when deep frying your smoked turkey:
1. Brine the Turkey
Before smoking, brine the turkey for 12-24 hours in a saltwater solution. Brining seasons the meat and helps it retain moisture during cooking.
2. Smoke the Turkey
Place the brined turkey in your smoker and use your choice of wood like hickory, pecan, apple, or cherry to smoke for about 4 hours at 225°F until it reaches an internal temperature of 150°F.
3. Chill and Dry
After smoking, let the turkey chill completely in the refrigerator. This helps dry the skin. Pat it very dry inside and out with paper towels before frying.
4. Prepare the Turkey Fryer
Assemble your turkey fryer outdoors on a level surface away from structures. Fill it with peanut oil about 3-4 inches up the sides of the fryer. Heat to 350°F.
5. Deep Fry the Turkey
Very slowly lower the turkey into the hot oil using the hook and gently shake to coat it in oil. Fry for about 3-4 minutes per pound. Monitor the oil temp and adjust heat to maintain 350°F.
6. Check Doneness
Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temp in the thickest part of the breast and thigh. Remove turkey when it reaches 165°F.
7. Drain and Rest
Carefully lift turkey from oil and let drain briefly before transferring to a cutting board. Let rest 15 minutes before carving.
Tips for the Best Deep Fried Smoked Turkey
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Inject with a marinade or rub the turkey with herbs/spices before smoking for extra flavor.
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Allow 4-5 days for fully thawing the turkey in the fridge before frying.
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Use a propane burner under the turkey fryer for better temperature control.
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Don’t rub oil directly on the turkey skin before frying. Just dry thoroughly.
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Fry 3-5 minutes longer than an unsmoked turkey since it’s already partially cooked.
Serving Your Deep Fried Smoked Turkey
A deep fried smoked turkey is incredibly moist and full of flavor. Here are some tasty ways to serve it:
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Carve it up and serve pieces on a platter with classic sides.
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Slice the breast meat and legs for turkey sandwiches.
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Dice or shred the turkey for salads, casseroles, soup, chili, or turkey tetrazzini.
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Pair it with waffles, French toast, or biscuits for a savory breakfast or brunch.
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Use leftovers for turkey pot pie, turkey noodle soup, turkey enchiladas, etc.
So go ahead and deep fry that smoked turkey this year! Follow the safety tips and technique in this guide for the crispiest skin, juiciest meat, and ultimate smoky flavor. Your family and guests will be amazed at this show-stopping deep fried smoked turkey.
SUPER SIDES FOR THANKSGIVING
Two of our favorite sides at Thanksgiving are sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts. And we wanted to take creative license with both of these staples, to create something simple yet delicious to share with our family. These two bonus recipes really hit it on all cylinders– and I guarantee everyone in your family will feel the same.
Starting with 2 pounds of Safeway Select brussels sprouts, we washed and trimmed them, and then cut then in half length-wise. Leaving a bit of the butt end intact keeps the layers of the sprout from coming apart.
We tossed the cut sprouts in olive oil and a garlic-forward rub and then arranged them cut-side down on the bottom of a big cast iron skillet. Drizzle a little more olive oil around and then top the sprouts with lots of chopped fresh garlic.
We cranked up the heat on the Traeger to 425* and put this prepared cast iron pan on the induction burner attached to the grill for about 10 minutes. The goal is to get them nice and golden on the cut side before putting the pan in the grill.
Once they are beginning to brown on the cut side, we moved the pan over to the hot grill and allowed them to cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly charred, golden and tender.
We pulled the sprouts from the grill, tossed in a handful of pomegranate arils and drizzled with balsamic glaze. You could also add some crumbled goat cheese to these as a finish, if you desired.
Melted potatoes have been all the rage on platforms like Pinterest lately. They’re tender and velvety and super delicious. For our Thanksgiving take on this dish, we subbed out regular potatoes for sweet potatoes and gave it a sweet finish.
With the grill at 425* (both sides can be cooked at the same time), we prepped the potatoes by washing them and then slicing them into ½ inch rounds. We left the skins intact because they cook until tender in this application.
To a big cast iron pan, we combined ½ melted butter and ½ olive oil and then placed a single layer of potatoes in the pan. We tossed the potatoes to coat in the oil/butter and then seasoned them with a bit of brown sugar and some cinnamon. Be sure to add brown sugar and cinnamon to the reverse side of the slices as you mix them around.
Once seasoned, they were spread out again in a single layerand the pan was placed in the hot grill. After about 15 minutes of cooking, we turned the potatoes over and gave the another 15 minutes of cooking time. By this point, they’ll be fork tender and getting golden brown.
We pulled the pan from the grill and put a dollop of marshmallow fluff on the top of each potato round. We used a kitchen torch to give the marshmallow a golden brown crust, and then served them hot alongside the turkey and brussels sprouts.
We’ve been super excited to use Safeway’s new Fresh Pass program to make grocery shopping so easy. We started with the free 30-day trial on the app and were hooked on how easy it’s made our life. With a couple of simple clicks, we can load our grocery list into the app, select a delivery time and we get free delivery on orders over $30. Seriously– from baking supplies to dinner ingredients to milk for the kiddos, it’s made our life so easy!
And with holiday parties ahead of us, there was no easier way to recipe test and figure out our menus than by having ALL the ingredients dropped on our front porch. A quick visit to the Safeway app allowed us to order all the ingredients we needed for these dishes, and we never had to leave the house! The unlimited free delivery seals the deal! We were thrilled we could make this smoked-fried turkey with little effort!
We picked out all of our ingredients on the Safeway app and had our groceries delivered to our house early the next morning. It seriously couldn’t have been easier.
PREPPING THE SMOKED-FRIED TURKEY
One of the benefits of an early morning delivery from Safeway’s Fresh Pass program is that it makes cooking dinner that same evening pretty easy. We had everything we needed dropped at our house, and were able to get things rolling for that evening’s dinner.
For the turkey, we have found that a cold water bath is the most efficient and quick way to defrost a frozen bird. Using a bucket or tub, we plopped the frozen turkey (still wrapped in its packaging) in the vessel and then filled it up with cold water. In less than 7 hours, our turkey was fully defrosted yet maintained a safe temperature for defrosting to avoid any food safety issues.
Often we like to spatchcock a turkey because it ensures that the bird cooks evenly. However, for this cook, we had the plan to fry it to finish, and a whole turkey (not spatchcocked) fits better in the fryer. So when the turkey was defrosted, we unwrapped it, pulled the neck and gizzards from the cavity and set it on a wire rack over a cookie sheet.
For this cook, we gave the bird a brief dry brine, which makes the end result juicer, more flavorful and simply the best. The bird got coated in a flavorful mixture of salt, sugar and spices (we went with a spicy maple blend) and then was placed in the fridge for a couple hours, uncovered, to let the dry brine really penetrate the meat.
Smoked Fried Turkey
FAQ
How long can you deep fry a smoked turkey?
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What kind of turkey can you deep fry?
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