How do oil less turkey fryers work?

Fried turkeys are the cherry on the top for festive seasons. Be it a Thanksgiving dinner or a Christmas dinner party; everybody enjoys fried turkey on the dinning table. In fact, in some countries like Turkey, eating fried turkey on a New Year is a common practice.

As an American, I can vouch that my country people can’t do Holidays without a fried turkey. However, as much as we love eating this big bird, I must confess—frying a turkey perfectly is next to an impossible job that we do every holiday. But if you get the best turkey fryer, it becomes slightly easier. And if you want, you can check out these awesome turkey fryers. I have used a few them and these are absolutely awesome.

Undoubtedly, we all love deep fried turkeys. I know, some of us can’t imagine a get together without a deep-fried bird. Talking about fried birds, there was one of my uncles who used to have turkey compulsorily on every weekend. He loved fried turkeys so much that he used to mock fried chickens as vegetarian turkeys.

Why should we opt for oil-less turkey fryers? 

I understand if you also share the same sentiments. But, as much you love fried turkey, you can’t deny that deep frying or basting while roasting this bird, the excess oil or butter does no good to your health. To some of us, this can be as harmful as being hazardous.

In addition to that, most of us suffer from diabetes and hypertension, which also make eating deep fried a very guilty process. Therefore, I suggest you think about oil-less turkey fryers.

Is oil-less turkey fryer a healthy option? 

Before I talk about whether oil-less turkey fryer is a healthy option or not, I want to acknowledge that these fryers aren’t completely free of oil. My point is: even if you are frying in an oil-less turkey fryer, you still need oil. Remember, you are frying meat. And isn’t frying all about frying in oil? 

Yes, you would need to apply oil on the turkey to fry it in an oil-less turkey fryer. However, the difference of oil usage between a deep turkey fryer and an oil-less turkey fryer lies in the amount of oil we use.

You can fry a turkey with 80% less oil in an oil-less turkey fryer. Not only turkey, one can fry almost everything that a deep fryer can do in an oil-less turkey fryer. From crispy French fries to chicken wings; you can enjoy your favorite fried recipes in an oil-less turkey fryer.

So, my answer is yes. An oil-less turkey fryer is definitely a healthier option for fried lovers. It will not only keep your cholesterol in check but also help you in maintain a healthy lifestyle.

I know many fitness enthusiasts who prefer using an oil-less turkey fryer instead of a regular turkey fryer. There are also people who lost weight because they gave up deep oil frying and instead chose oil-less turkey fryers.

Is oil-less turkey fryer a tasty option? 

Although the tastes differ slightly, I find both turkeys fried in a regular turkey fryer and a deep fryer equally good. Yes, an oil-less turkey fryer is definitely a tasty option.

The fried meat in this type of fryers is exceptionally good. It has got an excellent crispiness and the perfect crunch. If you aren’t informed, you wouldn’t be even able to guess if you are eating an oil-less fried turkey.

How do oil-less turkey fryers work?

Many of us wonder about this question. And while buying an oil-less fryer for the first time, despite uncountable Google searches, I wasn’t able to wrap my head around the technical details. I even tried to ask a fryer seller but all I got was confused, unclear answers.

But, hey, don’t you worry! I have got your back. Trust me, once you understand the basics, it’s no big deal.

Shall we begin? 

I know, most of us had gas ovens during our childhood and then we saw the shift to electric ovens in our households. And then came the era of convection ovens. I am pretty sure you were the first person to suggest electric convection oven at your households.

I am asking this because if you understand how electric convection ovens work, you have the answers with you. I mean, like a convection over and an air fryer, an oil-less turkey fryer also cooks the food by circulating hot air. So, all these three types of kitchen wares work in the same way.

An oil-less turkey fryer features an infrared technology that fries the turkey from inside and out. Generally, it comes with a cooker, a cooking basket, lifter, a meat thermometer. As this type of fryers isn’t used for day-to-day cooking, it is commonly used with propane tanks.

You need to put the bird in the big cooking basket and insert it in the fryer. Unlike deep fryers, you don’t need a gallon of oil to fry it. Instead, you need to use 80% less oil—whatever amount of oil is necessary to rub on the meet before inserting it in the fryer.

Like an air fryer, an oil-less fryer cooks the food by heating the air. It would heat up the air present inside the fryer to up to 392 Fahrenheit or 200 Celsius. After that, it circulates the hot air at a high speed, just like it happens in an electric convection oven.

The best part of this type of kitchen ware is that they are built with several small fans. These fans not only help the air heat up faster but also increases the speed of their movement. This, in turn, goes inside the meat and helps it get cooked thoroughly without leaving any cool spots.

Many users often doubt if large turkeys (that are over 12 pounds) will get evenly cooked. But I can tell you, it does cook evenly. Last Thanksgiving, I cooked a 14-pound turkey. It was so moist. Plus, it was perfectly crispy at the outside and juicy at the inside. I remember, everybody loved the turkey so much that some of my friends ended up buying oil-less turkey fryers for their personal use.

Now, let me tell you how an oil-less frying can result into a moisty turkey on the dinning table.

Let’s begin with basic science. Do you remember that water contains a certain of moisture all the time?

Yeah? 

Yeah! That is exactly what happens inside a fryer during an oil-less frying. However, the air inside a fryer contains oil instead of water. The high-speed air heated in 200-degree Celsius heat helps the oil to vaporize. So, when the air circulates in and out the meat, the oil penetrates the meat evenly, hence perfectly well.

You won’t believe if I tell you that the turkey ends up being as soft as boiled meat. On top of that, the oil rubbed on the surface of the meat becomes crispy and slightly crunchy.

The best perk of an oil-less fryers is that it cooks food evenly. There are some kitchen wares, such as traditional ovens and BBQs, in which the heat concentrates on some parts and provides less heat on other parts. In such machines, one has to continuously shift the meat to get it evenly cooked.

To understand how an oil-less turkey fryer works, you must understand that these machines are built with designed interiors that feature hundreds of holes. Furthermore, these holes are responsible to continuously supply constant heat and air (in a uniform but high speed) to cook the meat from all the sides.

If you want to see the heating element in oil-less turkey fryers to understand it’s mechanism better, you can take out the cooking basket from the fryer. Once you do that, you will see a designed tray on the bottom. This tray, although seems random, has carefully designed numbers of holes, which help the heat to supply evenly in the meat.

This is the feature that makes oil-less turkey fryers stand out of the crowd. Unlike, convection oven users, you don’t have to keep checking the meat to avoid cold spots. It makes oil-less turkey fryers so easy-to-use and convenient, especially during festival season.

Imagine, now, with the oil-less turkey fryer at home you don’t need to waste your whole day by keeping an eye on the turkey that’s getting cooked. Moreover, you can use the time to prepare other side dishes.

Another lucrative feature of oil-less turkey fryer is that they come with air filters. Yup, you heard it right.  It means you don’t have to deal with smelly residue or gravy inside the fryers. Every time, the interior blows air into the meat, its blowing odorless air.

To conclude, an oil-less turkey fryer works by circulating hot air inside the fryers and evenly heating the meat from all sides. I totally recommend using oil-less turkey fryers over traditional turkey frying. Undoubtedly, it’s convenient and easy to cook.