I've been a little interested in deep frying for a while. But I've heard it can make a mess in the kitchen, as well as make the house smell for days. Oil cleanup is an issue I can tolerate.
I thought about frying outside on the patio using the kettle. I have a bog-standard cast iron Dutch oven, and could build a charcoal pile directly under it.
Does anyone have experience frying food using a charcoal grill?
Edit: Please delete - I found another discussion thread after I posted.
I have in the past, not recently. Scallops, Fish, chicken. I found the key was being able to move the coals around to adjust the intensity of the heat rather than trying to move the dutch oven. Mostly too reduce the heat, otherwise the coals just intensify as you go along. If you have a cooking grid that has the hinges just have a tool handy to move the coals around. Keep a therm-a-pen handy to monitor the temps. It's fun and less messy than in the kitchen! Give it a shot.
Gear includes: Char-Griller's Grand Champ off set stick burner/smoker, SnS Kamado Deluxe, Weber 22, PBC, Victory gasser, Victory 36 griddle, Smoke Hollow electric smoker. ThermoWorks Thermapen Mk4, Smoke, Signals, and RFX4, Meater+, SNS-500, roti fits 22 n gasser, Emeril countertop TO, InkBird Sous Vide, Potane Vac/Sealer. Fire&Ice griddle/cooler ensemble.
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Just got into charcoal Dec ‘21 (PBC)
fav is brisky. Love Turkey on PBC. also Turkey in the glass,(any nice bourbon)
Bud has always been my barley pop.
Been smoking a handful of years, just got serious in the last two or three years. Thanks to AR n @glemn picked up an SnS Kamado for appx 1/3 price of new. I dont think he used it twice. Love AR! keep calm n smoke on! Miss you Bonesy.
Team Cook recently did fried chicken on the gasser. I was quite impressed! My first attempt at ever doing fried bird.
The fried items can rest on the indirect side then when every thing is looking good, probe for final temp. Yummm!
As long as you know yer temps in the kettle. You might be surprised. Shouldn't be much dif.
Last edited by Alan Brice; August 29, 2025, 01:43 PM.
I agree, If I lived in Cali instead of Boston, I would have a Santa Maria attachment by now! But alas, Can't justify it here, with the weather and storage etc...
But frying on charcoal is doable with a little practice.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
SmokingPat I've deep fried on my Weber kettle, using a cast iron dutch oven (5qt), and it works well. What I did was built the fire in the SNS, and I controlled heat by moving the dutch oven more or less over the SNS. If the oil got to boiling too hard, slide it over a little so it wasn't fully over the SNS. If the boil dropped, slide it back, easy peasy. I would check oil temp from time to time with my Thermapen.
I also liked that I was able to spread out the fried chicken wings on the other side of the cooking grate to drain, and that they stayed pretty warm in the grill as I continued with additional batches. Keeping mess AND smell out of the house is always good.
I do not fry as often as I used to. I have an electric deep fryer, but doubt I have used it in the past 1-2 years, just due to the amount of oil required, and the mess to clean up. And it doesn't hold as much food as the dutch oven. What it does have going for it is more precise temperature control.
If you should get serious about outdoor deep frying like fish fries and such look at the Bayou Classic outdoor deep fryers. I have 3 friends who have them. They are in a league of their own. In will have one before long.
SmokingPat Not what you asked about, but I’ve got one of these portable butane burners, works great for frying and no mess in the kitchen. I use it inside my garage for most of my frying. If you’re deep frying and want to get your oil temps hot faster……I’ve started the oil on the stove, then brought it outside. Not really necessary though as it gets hot pretty quick. No messin with coals.
Not to discourage, just a cautionary statement; if you're a "sloppy", in a hurry kind of cook the opportunity for spilling/dribbling oil on a live fire can be a very dangerous thing. The world is full of stories of successful, deep fried turkeys, and too many stories about careless people causing various levels of catastrophes. Same potential with smaller items.
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