Hot Fried Turkey

Last year I had fried turkey for the very first time, and it was to die for. Seriously, I could not believe how good it was and how long I've been missing out on it. Well, this year I cooked Thanksgiving lunch for my Dad. I decided I would try my hand at frying up some turkey, but the catch is I don't have one of those frying contraptions. So, I went googling for a fried turkey breast recipe. Plus, since it was just me and my Dad; I didn't want to cook a whole turkey. Well, I came across this recipe from Carla Hall (you may remember her from Top Chef) and decided to try it. Man, it was freaking GOOD. I made the spicy oil to go along with it, and that provided a lot of heat. The turkey had so much flavor and it was so incredibly moist. I brined the turkey (per the instructions) for a couple hours and I'm thinking that's what made it so moist. The turkey even tasted good the next day. Seriously, if you are making Thanksgiving for a handful of people give this recipe a try. You won't be disappointed. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
For the Brine:
2 quarts Water
1/2 cup Hot Sauce
1/2 cup Kosher Salt
1/2 cup Sugar
1 Turkey Breast (both sides; cut into 8 pieces)

For the Spiced Oil:
3 tablespoons Vegetable Oil (plus more for frying)
2 tablespoons Cayenne Pepper
 1 teaspoon Paprika
 2 teaspoons Red Pepper Flakes
 2 teaspoons Salt
 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
 1 teaspoon Sugar

For Dredging:
3 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Fresh Cracked Pepper

I think the hardest part of this recipe is chopping the turkey into 8 pieces. I don't own a meat cleaver, so it proved to be a bit difficult cutting the bone. But, I managed to get thru it with all my fingers in tact. Be extremely careful when cutting threw the bones. 
Take out a large saute pan and add the water, hot sauce, salt, and sugar. Add the turkey pieces and place the pot in your fridge for a couple hours. The recipe says brine the turkey for at least an hour. I brined mine for a little over 2 hours. While the turkey is brining; go ahead and make your spiced oil. Take out a small saute pan and add the oil thru the sugar to the pot. Over medium heat cook until fragrant...about 30 seconds to a minute. Remove from heat and pour into a small bowl. Set aside.

For the dredging; take out a medium bowl and combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
Once the turkey has finished brining; pour into a colander and pat the turkey dry with a paper towel. Place on a wire rack and lightly dust the turkey with some of the flour mixture. Then, transfer the turkey to a large plate and let air dry in the fridge for an hour.

About 15 minutes before your ready to take the turkey out of the fridge; get out your dutch oven and pour enough vegetable oil into the pot to cover the turkey while frying. I used about a bottle and a half of canola oil for this. Heat the oil to 325.

Take out the turkey from the fridge; and cake the turkey with your flour mixture. Be sure to press the flour into the turkey so that it adheres to the skin. Fry the turkey in the pre-heated oil for about 8 to 10 minutes. Carefully, remove and place on a plate lined with paper towels or a wire rack. Check the temperature of the turkey to ensure it's around 160 degrees. Then, crank up the oil to a temperature of 375 and fry the turkey a second time for 4-6 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and drizzle with the spiced oil. Enjoy!