Bill/SFNM wrote:What advantage does an electric deep fryer have over a simple cast iron dutch oven and a thermometer?

Bill, I am tending toward the simple old ways, as you do, but I am concerned about splatter and, as MAG mentioned, consistent heat is hard with gas.

When you fry outside, what is your heat source?

Hammond

David Hammond wrote:Bill, I am tending toward the simple old ways, as you do, but I am concerned about splatter and, as MAG mentioned, consistent heat is hard with gas.

When you fry outside, what is your heat source?

Hammond

I've got to disagree about consistent heat being harder with gas. No matter what your heat source, the oil temperature will drop as soon as you plop in the food. The 1500W element of the electric fryer is about the equivalent of a 5000 BTU gas burner. If you have a decent gas burner, you can crank up the heat and get it back up to the desired level and then ease it back to maintain a constant temperature.

I have 2 propane burners in my outside kitchen: a 100,000BTU and a 60,000BTU. Actually, I love the 60,000 one which is an Eastman Big Kahuna Wok Burner ($49). It has a great grid that in one position holds a round-bottom wok and in the other holds regular pots including turkey fryers. The burner gets so hot it has turned the bottom of my wok a glowing red. Great for deep frying also.

Bill/SFNM

I have 2 propane burners in my outside kitchen: a 100,000BTU and a 60,000BTU. Actually, I love the 60,000 one which is an Eastman Big Kahuna Wok Burner ($49). It has a great grid that in one position holds a round-bottom wok and in the other holds regular pots including turkey fryers. The burner gets so hot it has turned the bottom of my wok a glowing red. Great for deep frying also

I am blown away by the BTU's referenced in your outdoor kitchen. When you use such fire power, how long does a several gallon stock pot come to a boil? I have long entertained the thought of canning outdoors just to minimize the heat and moisture build up in the house during August.

My gas cooktop in my interior kitchen, I believe my strongest burner is 20-25,000 BTU. It brings a stock pot of water to boil much faster than my old electric smooth top. 40K or 100K would be hyper speed heating based on my other experiences.

Last summer, Erik M and Gary W went to a Chinese restaurant supply store. They told me of burners with BTU scores in 175-200K range. My old furnace was 250K BTU (we have a new one, which is less BTU and higher efficiency --- I just don't know what BTU). The service who maintained it suggested it was just short of the size to consider it a crematorium and they were not joking.

What safety considerations do you employ using such high throttle BTU power?

Thanks in advance!

Cathy2 wrote:
How long does a several gallon stock pot come to a boil?

What safety considerations do you employ using such high throttle BTU power?

Cathy2,
The only boiling I do outside is in a 30 gallon pot for lobsters. Can't say how long it takes to bring to a boil, but boiling point of water is about 15F lower here than at sea level.

Regarding safety: I'm a belt-and-suspenders person when it comes to that. I keep a grease-fire rated extinguisher near and wear fire/heatproof long gloves, especially when introducing the food into the hot oil. The biggest dangers come from overheating the oil, overfilling the pot, splattering, etc. Nothing flamable is anywhere near the burner.

To avoid a fire from overheating, I usually start the oil heating well in advance with a fairly low flame so I can go back inside to prepare the food. I never leave the burner unattended when cooking with high heat.

To avoid oil spilling out of the pot from overfilling, foaming, splattering etc. I use a large dutch oven and am careful never to fill it more than halfway with oil. It is very important that all food be as dry as possible; wet food causes all kinds of bubbling and foaming, especially at high altitude. After soaking potatoes for frying, I use plenty of paper towels for drying. When using wet batters like tempura, I add pieces one at a time. Hope this helps.

Bill/SFNM

Hi Bill,

What is abundantly clear is your anticipation of a negative event, taking all precautions to avoid and being prepared, if something does happen. You're careful food preparation and execution goes a long way to avoid creating the environment for a negative event.

I do have a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. I'm not sure about its' effectiveness in a grease fire, though I will check on this soon. I get the impression you are frying turkeys.

Gary has suggested I buy some welder's gloves because I have singed hairs on my arm preparing the fire for my WSM. I also have a few embers melted into the soles of my shoes. I have learned wearing cotton clothing is far safer than synthetics around a fire. The synthetics have a nasty behavior of burning at a higher temperature and sticking to your skin increasing the damage to your epidermis.

Thanks for the tips, I appreciate learning how to avoid problems whenever I can.

Regards,

In the past few months, I bought the relatively cheap Philips model pictured below at Target of all places. I really like to make wings for Saturday and Sunday football.




My experience was that it was a lot of work to lug out the machine, heat up the oil, cook the wings, wait for the oil to cool down, drian the oil, then store the oil.

The pan frying method worked better and in less time for me. Now, I have yet another piece of equipment that will become nothing more than a relic some day.

YourPalWill wrote:The pan frying method worked better and in less time for me. Now, I have yet another piece of equipment that will become nothing more than a relic some day.

I hate to say this, especially since the fryer from DeLonghi I have was a gift, but I guess I already pretty much implied it or hinted at it: Yeah, it's a pain that doesn't seem worth the effort. Three years in a box says it all.

A

Well, boys, I'll tell you: the cast iron pan with basket (of which there are several on ebay for about 10 bucks) is looking better all the time.

Truth be told, though, there are also a number of DeLonghis (some new) for radically reduced prices.

Hammond

wait for the oil to cool down, drian the oil, then store the oil.

I understood that the intention with your Phillips and my Rival (very similar machines, both from Target) is that you simply store the oil in the fryer until you're ready to discard it.

David Hammond wrote:Well, boys, I'll tell you: the cast iron pan with basket (of which there are several on ebay for about 10 bucks) is looking better all the time.

David,

I wouldn't bother with a basket. Food, even fries, can stick to it. I much prefer an Asian spider strainer. You can use it to stir, separate, and quickly remove frying food just one or two pieces at a time or the entire batch with a few scoops.

I use it for many kitchen tasks - it is often much better than a slotted spoon.

Bill/SFNM

Bill/SFNM wrote:I wouldn't bother with a basket. Food, even fries, can stick to it. I much prefer an Asian spider strainer. You can use it to stir, separate, and quickly remove frying food just one or two pieces at a time or the entire batch with a few scoops.

I use it for many kitchen tasks - it is often much better than a slotted spoon.

Bill/SFNM

Bill/SFNM,

The basket seems part of the deal on ebay, so I'll take it, but I'll also take your advice and experiment with the spider strainer.

I'm guessing, too, that without the basket, I can maybe fit more in the pot.

Hammond

As I said earlier, I use different tools for different things. I would never fry chicken in the deep fryer, chips are better in a kettle, but for fries, onion rings, fish, doughnuts, I much prefer the deep fryer. If one had the capacity in Chicago to fry outside on a consistent basis, the story might be different. But even with a yarded house in the City, that option is not really viable. The mess issue is not just a question of splatter, but odor. Frequently, when I use the deep fryer, I am entertaining and I prefer not to greet my guests with stale smell of spent oil. The deLonghi severely minimizes that. Finally, I do find that the deep fryer with a temperature guage is much easier to control than a pot and a thermometer. And perhaps that is because, there is little to control. The temperature is set, when filled, it dips for a few seconds and then returns quickly. This all happens with the lid closed, so I can do something else in the kitchen while not being a slave to the fryer.

But, to each his own, living in an old rowhouse, I have a relatively small kitchen, but a very large laundry room. To compensate and balance, I have created a sort of double decker kitchen by converting most of my laundry room into a pantry. Therefore, I'm used to having to pull things (ice cream makers, stock pots, cake pans) from downstairs. Oh, as an aside, I have used my deep fryer so much that I'm on my second one.

MAG wrote:Finally, I do find that the deep fryer with a temperature guage is much easier to control than a pot and a thermometer. And perhaps that is because, there is little to control. The temperature is set, when filled, it dips for a few seconds and then returns quickly. This all happens with the lid closed, so I can do something else in the kitchen while not being a slave to the fryer.

melissa,

is the thermometer on the delonghi accurate? I know many deep fryers have problems with inaccurate internal thermometers..

I imagine it is, but it's always one of the many concerns I have with deep fryers..

MAG wrote:Finally, I do find that the deep fryer with a temperature guage is much easier to control than a pot and a thermometer. And perhaps that is because, there is little to control. The temperature is set, when filled, it dips for a few seconds and then returns quickly.

MAG,
Sorry, but a temperature drop of only a few seconds is a serious violation of the laws of thermodynamics and you could to be fined or prosecuted.

Bottom line, though, is how does the food taste, it's texture, and the oil content if you're watching your fat intake (some oil will always be absorbed and that often has a positive effect on flavor and texture.) For most frying, I shoot for 365F. So I heat the oil (usually peanut) to about 375F and plop in the food. The temperature will usually drop to around 300F and even with a 100,000BTU gas burner, it will take a minute to get up to 365F, depending on the water content of the food.

Don't you just love fried food? I have a cauliflower that I think I'll fry up today - coating the florets in parm/flour.

Bill/SFNM

Sorry, but a temperature drop of only a few seconds is a serious violation of the laws of thermodynamics and you could to be fined or prosecuted.

Yes, I'm exaggerating a bit, but ultimately, you're right in that the quality of the end product is the best judge. And given my quality/convenience ratio, the deep fryer is my friend.

The most heavenly item I made this summer out of the deep fryer was fried zucchini spears using a beer batter and dipped into a basil mayonnaise that had freshly toasted and ground fennel seeds in it. Paired with a piece of grilled tuna and heirloom tomatoes, it was quite the summer meal.

I have to say, I am enjoying my DeLonghi roto-fryer. It basically just heats up oil, BUT, in a nice, contained, low-odor, safe way. I always worry about having a big vat of oil on my stove being dangerous. The DeLonghi seems a little safer. It's also pretty easy to clean. My one complaint is that the thermostat is worthless--I use my Raytek thermometer to determine the oil temp.
I had fun with the fryer this weekend:

Curry potato puffs breaded in panko with yogurt-mint-cilantro sauce (from Terrific Pacific cookbook by Anya von Bremzen) and shrimp chips with an improvised curry sauce (not pictured)

Not gonna lie, I saw the subject of this thread and thought I was going to get suggestions about what crazy things to deep fry. I was thoroughly excited! Oh well, back to my own random experiments...

I have an Oster 2.5L Cool Zone Deep Fryer. I fried on Saturday and I plan on doing it again this Sunday. Do I need to remove the oil or can it just sit in there? Thanks!

It's basically this, but older:
http://www.oster.com/cooking/deep-fryer ... ml#start=2

Pie Lady wrote:I have an Oster 2.5L Cool Zone Deep Fryer. I fried on Saturday and I plan on doing it again this Sunday. Do I need to remove the oil or can it just sit in there? Thanks!

It's basically this, but older:
http://www.oster.com/cooking/deep-fryer ... ml#start=2

I would remove and strain the oil immediately after it cools down. It might just be me but it seems like leaving the debris in the oil for any longer than you have to imparts off flavors.

I don't have a deep fryer but I am satisfied with using my wok for the occasional deep fry. The rounded bottom is very efficient in terms of oil usage/coverage and the wide rim catches most splatters. Add a wire screen for the top and a spider for moving stuff around and you have a multipurpose deep frying implement.

I've worn out two and am on my third DeLonghini Roto-fryer. I use it at least a couple times per month. The little powerhouses have churned out mountains of hot wings, french fries and other fried delights.

This past Sunday, it was pheasant and quail nuggets with tater tots for the family, sharing opening weekend bounty from the wilds of central IL.

Roto - you get my moto runnin!

Davooda

Pie Lady, I don't think you necessarily need to do anything to the oil right now. When you used the fryer a few days ago, did it produce a strong odor of old oil? If you smell the oil now, while cold, is the smell strong and unpleasant? If so, I'd change the oil before you use the fryer again this coming weekend. If, on the other hand, the oil is fairly new and has fairly little or no odor once it cools off, I think it's fine to just put the fryer away til the next time you use it. We let the smell of the oil be our guide as to when we change it, and when we do change it, we also clean out the fryer and rinse and wipe out all the solid residues.

I made the mistake of ordering "French Fries" when I was in Belgium once. I got a real tongue lashing from the waiter....they are not French fries but "frite", and were invented in Belgium so he told me. It was just a natural reaction to saying "French Fry" without thinking.

By the way they seem to have the De Longhi fryer at Kohls and I would check Bed Bath and Beyond. If you have any coupons you can probably get a really good deal now.

What david Hammond did you end of buying? What did you end up making in it?

Sweet Baboo is a big fan of French fries, so some years ago I gave him a DeLonghi deep fryer that suited him well. When it came time to replace it, I looked around and got him the Presto Cool Daddy --- similar in size (maybe a little bigger) and price, much easier to clean. That seems to me to be a big advantage. He says it doesn't heat up as fast as the DeLonghi did, but overall, he's quite happy with it.