Cajun Deep-Fried Turkey

Ingredients

• 2 cups butter
• 7 fluid ounces beer
• 0.25 cup onion juice
• 0.25 cup garlic juice
• 0.25 cup Louisiana-style hot sauce
• 0.25 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 (12 pound) whole turkey, neck and giblets removed
• 3 gallons peanut oil for frying, or as needed

Steps

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add beer, onion juice, garlic juice, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Mix until marinade is well blended.
2. Use a marinade-injecting syringe or turkey baster with an injector tip to inject marinade into turkey, including legs, back, wings, thighs, and breasts. Place the turkey in a large food-safe plastic bag or brining bag and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
3. When it's time to fry, remove turkey from the bag and place into the cooking basket; discard any remaining marinade. Measure the amount of oil needed by lowering turkey into the fryer and filling with enough oil to cover it. Remove turkey and set aside.
4. Heat oil to 365 degrees F (185 degrees C). Lower the turkey slowly into the hot oil using the fryer’s lift mechanism. Fry for about 3 minutes per pound, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees F (74 degrees C), about 36 minutes total for a 12-pound bird.
5. Turn off the flame and slowly remove turkey from oil, making sure all of the oil drains out of the cavity. Allow turkey to rest on a serving platter before carving, about 20 minutes.