Frying Questions

[W E H]

I’ve never been one to DEEP fry my own fish, shrimp, oysters, steaks, ETC. I Like eating those things but I would rather have the professional (restaurants) cook it for me so I don’t have to deal with the mess. I cook lots of everything else (Including pan frying stuff) just very little deep frying. I’ve done it but it was usually a once in a great while and never saved the grease. Or big group fish fry and we tossed the grease then too. I’ve fried fish and fries last week, and egg rolls today. Used a 3 gallon cast iron pot (Keeps the heat even) and canola today and peanut for fish. I didn’t save either grease. As I may start doing this more ;
do y’all reuse your grease?
How do you store it?
How do you clean it ?
Back when we were frying lots of fish (Big group fish fries) , we’d fry fresh potato fries every so often To clean it.
Or am I better off using fresh grease? What kind?

I can buy 5 gallon jugs pretty reasonably from Sams depending on type.
I only fry outside, if it makes a difference.

I know the Internets is full of answers but I trust 83% answers given on this site.

Thanks.
WEH

[Capt Glenn]

I don't reuse fish grease. If I am going to fry fish a couple of times over a few days then I might let it settle and then pour the clean oil off the top to reuse and add some new oil to it. But I don't care for seafood fried in old fishy oil.

One thing I'd recommend is to reduce the amount of oil you use. Unless you are frying for big numbers of people you shouldn't need to use 3 or 4 gallons of oil. I started using small electric deep fryers and for say up to 6 or so people one of those little fryers works fine and I might use a gallon of oil or less per fryer. If I have more people I use two of the electric fryers. If I have a big group I break out the propane burner and cowboy wok. It fries fish great and doesn't need tons of oil to do it either.

For fried chicken and chicken fried steak I use a cast iron skillet on the stove. I don't do that very often but I like the results better than deep frying.

When I fry a number of batches I do the same thing with the potatoes. I slice them thin and slice up onion too. Roll 'em in cornmeal and fry them. I usually do a couple batches of fish and a batch of potatoes and onions and then repeat. But I don't think it cleans up the oil well enough to store it and use it again. Still smells fishy to me.

[Smokeater]

Lot of it has to do with what your cooking it in. Cajun fryer and others like it that don't burn the oil or the crumbs/meal will allow you to filter and reuse your oil. I also do a couple of batches of taters to clean up the oil some.

[W E H]

I don't reuse fish grease. If I am going to fry fish a couple of times over a few days then I might let it settle and then pour the clean oil off the top to reuse and add some new oil to it. But I don't care for seafood fried in old fishy oil.

One thing I'd recommend is to reduce the amount of oil you use. Unless you are frying for big numbers of people you shouldn't need to use 3 or 4 gallons of oil. I started using small electric deep fryers and for say up to 6 or so people one of those little fryers works fine and I might use a gallon of oil or less per fryer. If I have more people I use two of the electric fryers. If I have a big group I break out the propane burner and cowboy wok. It fries fish great and doesn't need tons of oil to do it either.

For fried chicken and chicken fried steak I use a cast iron skillet on the stove. I don't do that very often but I like the results better than deep frying.

When I fry a number of batches I do the same thing with the potatoes. I slice them thin and slice up onion too. Roll 'em in cornmeal and fry them. I usually do a couple batches of fish and a batch of potatoes and onions and then repeat. But I don't think it cleans up the oil well enough to store it and use it again. Still smells fishy to me.

I was frying for ten (family, in-laws, kids friends). Used a gallon each time. I’m happy to hear you don’t save it either, that’s kind of what I was wanting to hear, I don’t like fishy Smelling tasting either. I’ve got some big deep cast iron pans that I use for other frying. I only break out the bigger pot when I’m cooking for group, which is rare.
Thanks

[manwitaplan]

We don’t fry a lot but about 10 years ago I bought a Dcell fish fry pump. It has a strainer on the bottom and the hose fits back in the bottle. It works awesome. My oil is perfectly golden no residue in bottle. I bought it at academy. I just looked on their site and did not see it. I still have the box it came in I will look when I can.


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[Texas Grown]

Come to the next Bownanza, and Team Fish Head will show you how it's done! We have served as many as 750 at one TBH picnic.

[ThisLadyHunts]

I don’t deep-fry very often either. However, unless I’m frying fish, I always save my oil for reuse. Fats, or “lipids” of any kind, are naturally anti-microbial and will last forever if unadulterated. It’s the food solids that get left behind from the cooking process—and “off gas” while suspended in the oil—that give it a rancid smell and flavor after awhile. To mitigate these solids, your oil must be carefully filtered before storing. Here’s how I filter and store mine:

After frying, let your oil cool to room temperature (I leave it in the cast iron Dutch oven i just used for frying; and I leave it on the stove top to cool).

Use the original container the oil came in (which should now be empty because all the oil is cooling in the Dutch oven) to store your grease/oil. Place the empty container in your kitchen sink; I like to place a paper towel down first to cover the drain in case of a spill.

Next, use a funnel placed in the top of the container to strain your grease, but here’s the important part: I have a (plastic) funnel with a snap-in screen that sits down inside the funnel. However, the holes in this screen are too small to catch the smaller food particulates (I.e., flour) so I pull out the screen, line the funnel with a small coffee filter or a paper towel, replace the screen to keep the filter/paper towel from collapsing in on itself from the weight of the grease, and pour the grease slowly into the funnel and back to the original container.

When all your grease has been returned to the container, remove the funnel, put the lid on the container, and store.

FWIW, I store mine in the pantry (I lay down a piece of foil topped with a paper towel to set it on).

Sounds complicated but, to be honest, it took me longer to type this out than it does to pour up your grease.

[peterp63]

It takes forever for that oil to drain through that coffee filter. You definitely have patience, sir.

[Leaverrite]

Pro tip I learned for filtering - separate a 2-ply paper towel carefully into 1 ply. Leave about half an inch on one side connected and neatly make a rectangular fold. Line inside a funnel and good to go. Forget coffee filters, way to slow

Second tip: save oily paper towels in a zip loc bag for fire starters. They burn the oil slow and paper towels act like a wick

[peterp63]

Pro tip I learned for filtering - separate a 2-ply paper towel carefully into 1 ply. Leave about half an inch on one side connected and neatly make a rectangular fold. Line inside a funnel and good to go. Forget coffee filters, way to slow

Second tip: save oily paper towels in a zip loc bag for fire starters. They burn the oil slow and paper towels act like a wick

So, are you using only one of the two plys or separating them and then using both plys again?? Sorry, I’m a little confused by the pro tip.

[Leaverrite]

I keep 1 paper towel together as 1 paper towel. Just open it up like a hot dog bun and leave the bottom connected. I do this because most paper towels are half- sheet size now.

[friscopaint]

good information because peanut oil is expensive. Thermometer is paramount in oil too when cooking if it's not a self controlling unit/cooker, nothing worse than burning batch and having burnt smelling oil to cook in.

[cmwessels]

Buy a cajun fryer and never look back. I know several people including myself that just leave the oil in the fryer and use it for several months, especially when its cooler. When your ready to fry just turn it on and heat it up. The last batch made it through the spring frying fish every week during lent. I purposefully kind of tried to see if it would go bad and it never did. Food never got greasy or had a burnt taste. Key is not overheating the grease. The 3 gallon fryer will cook for 10-15 people easily, clean up is easy, and you don't have to be cleaning and disposing grease every time that you cook.