Thanksgiving Fails: Here's One Seriously Good Reason Not to Fry Your Frozen Turkey

Turkey Day is almost here, and President Trump has pardoned Gobble and Waddle, so it’s time to celebrate. Over the years, numerous crazy traditions have cropped up, including the turducken, which I am going to try for the first time Thursday. Call me weak, call me a turducken traitor, but in full disclosure, I looked up a recipe and decided it was simply too much for me to handle while simultaneously getting ready for the kids and the relatives to arrive. So I ordered a turducken roll from a catalog. I would bow my head in shame, but that thing looked really hard to cook.

I am genuinely curious as to how the Frankenstinian creation that John Madden made famous will taste.

Of course, another beloved ritual is frying turkeys. If you’re like me, you find that turkeys aren’t all that wonderful, and that a nice carne asada steak or a good bit of sausage is far superior. Still, turkey is the thing for the beloved November holiday, and one way to spice it up is to give it some good ol’ frying oil.

Just be careful: if the turkey is frozen, let it thaw out, or this could be you:

DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME: A frozen turkey erupts in a deep-fryer during a firefighters’ demonstration meant to warn people about Thanksgiving cooking dangers. pic.twitter.com/ECgfVlFEuJ
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 25, 2025

Here’s the deal: get it out of the freezer in time.

Fridge thawing: If thawing in the refrigerator, it takes a frozen turkey about 24 hours for every 4 to 5 pounds of the frozen turkey's listed weight. This means that an average 16-pound frozen turkey takes about 4 days to thaw in the refrigerator.
Cold water thawing: If thawing in cold water, it takes a frozen turkey about 30 minutes to thaw for every pound. For example, an average 16-pound frozen turkey will take about 8 hours to thaw using the cold water method. But remember that you can't simply cover your turkey with cold water and forget it overnight—the cold water method requires draining and refreshing the water every 30 minutes.

FEAST ON MORE: Watch: Trump's Hilarious Pardon for Thanksgiving Turkeys, Gobble and Waddle

Turns out, there are many things that can go wrong if you’re not careful:

Since we are approaching Thanksgiving in a few days, here are some Turkey frying fails… pic.twitter.com/oBaIjMYz48
— Steve 🇺🇸 (@SteveLovesAmmo) November 23, 2025

But why the massive fireball when you try to fry a turkey that hasn’t been sufficiently thawed? It’s the science, which I’ll let somebody else explain:

While any kind of deep frying comes with some risks, the main issue here is home cooks attempting to cook a turkey that's still frozen. That ice equals moisture, and if you've ever flicked water on a hot pan of oil, you can see why this is a bad idea. Without getting too scientific, the extremely high temperature of the oil turns the ice instantly to steam. As the steam rapidly expands, it will literally blow the oil out of the pot, where it can be ignited by the heat source. It only takes a small amount of oil to catch fire before the whole lot goes up in flames.

Every year fire departments beg you not to do this…and Every year Darwin awards shows up with a frozen turkey and a dream.

Frozen bird + 350°F oil = water turns to steam → expands 1,700× → oil volcano → instant backyard flamethrower.

Moral of the story: Thaw your bird or… pic.twitter.com/B5dqYB9qxt
— Desiree (@DesireeAmerica4) November 23, 2025

Moral of the story: Thaw your bird or lose your eyebrows (and maybe the garage).

We here at RedState wish you a happy – and safe – Thanksgiving. Make sure you don’t start a fire with your turkey, and then maybe we can all get some real food (like a New York-style sausage and pepperoni pizza) on Friday.

In the meantime, let's revisit one of the all-time great Monday Night Football clips —actually one of the greatest television moments ever — complete with a turducken: