This Thanksgiving the NFPA and Basco Security are advising people to cook your bird the old fashion way, in the oven, and keep the outdoor gas-fueled turkey fryers away! These fryers require  a substantial amount of cooking oil at high temperatures, just increasing the risk of injury. The use of turkey fryers by consumers can lead to devastating burns, other injuries and the destruction of property.

  • Hot oil may splash or spill at any point during the cooking process. Any contact between hot oil and skin could result in serious injury. Any contact between hot oil and nonmetallic materials could lead to serious damage.
  • In deep frying, oil is heated to temperatures of 350 degrees Fahrenheit or more! Cooking oil is combustible, and if heated beyond its cooking temperature, its vapors can ignite! This fire danger is another factor on top of the danger from the hot oil.
  • Propane-fired turkey fryers are designed for outdoor use, particularly for Thanksgiving, by which time both rain and snow are common in many parts of the country. If rain or snow strikes exposed hot cooking oil, the result can be a splattering of the hot oil or a conversion of the rain or snow to steam, either of which can lead to burns. The frozen turkey may splatter hot oil, which could cause a serious injury.
  • The approximately 5 gallons of oil in these devices introduce an additional level of hazard to deep fryer cooking, as does the size and weight of the turkey, which must be safely lowered into and raised out of the large quantity of hot oil. Many turkeys are purchased frozen, and they may not be fully thawed when cooking begins. As with a rainy day, a defrosting turkey creates the risk of contact between hot cooking oil.
  • There is a new outdoor turkey cooking appliance that does not use oil.

Turkey fryers that use oil are not suitable for acceptably safe use by even a well-informed and careful consumer.