I'm hosting Thanksgiving this year. Should be a piece of cake, only 7 people, including us. I'm not too terribly worried. In fact, the whole purpose of this post is to save a recipe that I can't seem to pin on my Pinterest board because there are no images on the web page. Down here we fry our turkeys. Don't judge. The Mr. is from Ohio and just LOVES everything Midwestern. Honestly, he's the only reason I know what a crock pot is. A product of a teacher and school superintendent he was raised on food that could be done by the time everyone got home from school/practice/meetings. Low and slow. Also, roasted turkey on Thanksgiving. In the oven. For hours on end. Great, fine, whatever. Then, he met Moi and BAM! Convert. I'm pretty sure the only time he's ever hurt his mama's feelings was the Thanksgiving he demanded she have at least one fried turkey, made everyone at the table try it and NOT ONE person touched the bird from the oven after that. Not. One. I'm not even kidding. Fried turkey is where it's at.
So the trick (in my humble opinion) of a fried turkey is in the marinade and the rub. And, in this case, by marinade I mean injection. You got it, injection. Ever watch QVC? HSN? Know anyone that has? One of the best laughs I've ever had was at the expense of my older brother when he announced he had been watching one home shopping channel or another and purchased the "Cajun Injector Set" at about 3am. What? Oh man, did we ever get a chuckle out of that. What, pray tell, does one do with a Cajun Injector Set? Shoot up your turkey, that's what! Actually, you could probably use it with any meat you're cooking. I just prefer it in my turkey. Yes. Before you ask, I bought one too. Now they sell it on the spice aisle of your local grocery store. We are no longer required to watch bad TV during the wee hours to possess such a kitchen tool. I bought one. Used the mix that came with it a couple of times. Pretty dadgum tasty. But this year I wanted to try something different. So, as would anyone in this day and age, I hit up the Internet., This is the recipe I came up with. I plan on using any leftover for a rub. If it tastes half as good as it smells it will be a smashing success. I'll let you know next week!
Fried Turkey Injection
16 oz. Italian salad dressing
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
1 tsp. celery salt
2-3 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/3 bottle paprika pepper
1/2 can of beer (optional)
3 heaping tsp. Poultry Magic seasoning
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. white pepper
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 dashes Tabasco