Deep fryer usage

[stardragon]

My brother wants to leave the oil in his deep fryer. How long is it safe to do this? When should he remove the oil? Any more tips for a new user?

Note: His fryer didn't come with usage instructions.

Thank you!

[Andy M.]

You can leave the oil in the fryer as long as you store it in a cool, dark location. How long it will be good is a function of a number of things such as, what was fried in it - high protein items such as meats deterioriate oil faster than veggies, whether or not the oil was strained after each use to remove frying residue, if the oil was heated up to or past its smoke point and the type of oil used.

Oil will darken with reuse. If foods darken too quickly (before they are cooked), it's a sign the oil needs to be changed. With each use, the oil's smoke point drops, resulting in the early darkening.

[Corey123]

And the best type of oil to use in a deep fryer, especially if you plan to do extremely high-temp deep frying is peanut oil.

Because it has a much hight heat tolerance and it won't smoke as easily as
other oils will. You will also need a deep frying thermometer to measure the temperature accurately.


~Corey123.

[Andy M.]

Originally Posted by Corey123

And the best type of oil to use in a deep fryer, especially if you plan to do extremely high-temp deep frying is peanut oil.

Because it has a much hight heat tolerance and it won't smoke as easily as
other oils will. You will also need a deep frying thermometer to measure the temperature accurately.
~Corey123.

Peanut oil is a good choice. Also good are corn, canola and safflower oils for the same reasons.

If your deep fryer does not have a thermostat (most do) a thermometer is important to successful frying.

[Aurora]

Originally Posted by Corey123

And the best type of oil to use in a deep fryer, especially if you plan to do extremely high-temp deep frying is peanut oil.

Because it has a much hight heat tolerance and it won't smoke as easily as
other oils will. You will also need a deep frying thermometer to measure the temperature accurately.

If you are going for flavor, I prefer peanut oil, however in terms of smoke point there are others (safflower and soy bean) with higher smoke points:

http://www.goodeatsfanpage.com/Colle...mokePoints.htm

[Andy M.]

Good info, Aurora.

I have sought smoke point information in the past and found the information is the most inconsistent information of any subject. Every site that offers the info seems to have different numbers. It's very frustrating. As a result, I stick to the few oils I'm comfortable with and skip the rest.

[Aurora]

I agree. Upon further reading, there are different smoke points for the same oils depending upon how they are refined and upon the strain of the plant from which they are derived.

I'm looking for some sort of reliable information on the most commonly available brands of oils on the market. If a person cannot get the specially refined oil then the smoke point is irrelevant to them.

[kleenex]

What deep fryer are we talking about here. Can the container only go into the refrigerator with a cover on top???

[Corey123]

None in particular, I don't think, but I DO own two.

One is the giant electric Turk N' Surf Turkey Fryer and the other is the Presto
Options Multi-Cooker which also can be used as a small deep fryer. Both of them
come with baskets for this perpose, and both can be used as steamers and boilers for a clambake.

But you can also use any 5-qt. Dutch Oven or 8-qt. stock pot as a deep fryer.

One note:

I forgot to mention that peanut oil can be very expensive.


~Corey123.

[jkath]

Originally Posted by stardragon

Note: His fryer didn't come with usage instructions.

Just a thought - have your brother go online and google the make/model of his fryer. Generally you can download the entire informational packet that comes with the fryer.