The Weather’s Attempts To Ruin Deep-Fried Turkeys

This time of year is absolutely glorious.

Fall weather, family, football and friends.

Let me add another to enhance the alliteration: fried foods. More specifically, deep-fried turkeys and the weather.

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If you don’t want to end up on a montage of deep-fried turkeys fails, I’d suggest you keep reading.

How Does Weather Matter?

Let’s get into the meat and potatoes of the turkey frying.

Simply put, weather matters. Please, do not try to deep fry a turkey during rain or snow. The mixing of cooler water with the very hot oil can cause flare-ups or even explosions!

Do not be a meme: check the weather before starting your fryer.

Also, let’s talk drought. Above is a drought map of the U.S. If you are in an area that has color on this map, you should take extra precautions.

You do not want to be the person who lights trees on fire when your turkey explodes.

Also, please check the forecast for winds in your area. Should you make a mistake and start a fire, strong winds could spread fires out of control quickly.

Rapid-Fire Tips For All Air Fryer Operators

Rain and snow can cause some crazy spectacles, but so can humans. So here are some rapid-fire checks you should do before trying to deep fry a turkey.

Let’s start with some of the big ones:

The National Fire Protection Association discourages the use of outdoor gas-fueled turkey fryers because they can tip and cause flames to spread.

Be sure to leave 2 feet between the tanker and the fryer since you don’t want a chain reaction of explosions.

Next up — no tipping: Be sure to set up fryers on a steady, sturdy and level surface to try to avoid tipping.

More oil, more problems: Don’t overfill the fryer with oil, because when you drop the turkey in, it can overflow and cause flames.

Invest in thermostats: These cookers often don’t have thermostat controls, so the oil can get too hot and also ignite. You're shooting for 165 degrees.

Don’t burn the house down: As stated earlier about trees, also make sure your fryer is not near your garage or the deck of your house.

Thaw, thaw, thaw! A big one: please thaw your turkey completely! If you don’t, the pattern of potentially causing explosions also applies here.

It’s because the ice and water from an unthawed turkey can cause the same problems as rain or snow, which can really ruin a family day.

Don’t be a hero: Use goggles and safety mitts. I don’t need to explain that one.

Proper disposal: Allow the grease to cool overnight before disposing of it.

What To Do Should The Worst Happen

Let’s do a hypothetical: unfortunately, something happened, and you have a fire. What now?

First, keep a grease-rated fire extinguisher nearby. I cannot stress this one enough: Do not use water on a grease fire. This will only spread the fire.

Mission: Success

Should you succeed, you have a turkey in the fryer and no explosions or fire.

The internal temperature of the turkey should reach 165 degrees, per the USDA, and you will be good to go.

But don’t rush the art form — allow the turkey to sit for 20 minutes before carving.

Also, don’t let the cooked bird sit out for more than two hours before refrigerating.

Here’s to not ruining Thanksgiving for your family and your neighbors. Enjoy!

Rob Shackelford is a meteorologist and climate scientist at weather.com. He received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Georgia studying meteorology and experimenting with alternative hurricane forecasting tools.