It's all fun and games until you volunteer to cook the bird for Thanksgiving or you're "volun-told." If Denver7's Allie Jennerjahn can do it at 5 a.m. in a snowstorm live on TV, you've got this!
But there are some important safety steps to take to ensure the holiday festivities go off without a hitch.
1,610 home cooking fires were reported in 2022 on Thanksgiving Day alone. Thanksgiving is the peak day for these types of calls — more than triple the daily average.
Christmas Day and Christmas Eve ranked second and third with both having nearly twice the daily average.
South Metro Fire Rescue got up bright and early to walk Denver7 viewers through the most important safety tips for deep frying the turkey this Thanksgiving.
1. Set up your cooking station a safe distance from your home. Do not try cooking the turkey in the garage or on your deck. You may think you'll stay warmer, but it will present a greater fire danger.
How far away to cook your turkey from your house, how big of a pot to use and the tools to have nearby, in the video player below:
2. Make sure your turkey is completely thawed. Oil and water do not mix, and if your turkey is not thawed entirely, the water from the turkey will vaporize and expand rapidly, turning into steam. This can cause the oil to splatter or even explode, so once the turkey is thawed, pat it dry too.
3. That's also why you want a fire extinguisher right next to your cooking station. Never try to put out a cooking fire, involving oil, with water.
4. You can measure how much oil to put in your pot by first filling the tank with water, mark the line on your pot, then place the turkey inside to measure how much liquid is displaced. You want the liquid to just barely cover your turkey. This is an important step, so your pot doesn't overflow with hot oil. You can then dump the water out, dry your turkey again and start cooking.
The technique to start frying your turkey and avoid starting a fire, in the video player below:
5. Don't season your turkey on the outside. Brian Willie, the public information officer with South Metro Fire Rescue, likes to inject Cajun seasoning into the innards of his bird.
6. Put some thick gloves on to protect your hands, and then you can put your bird into peanut oil for about 45 minutes.
6. Turn off the heat before taking the turkey out, and let the oil drip off the turkey. Let it sit, and then serve.
Check out the moment of truth revealing the final product in the video player below: