Fire Chief urges turkey-cooking safety

PEORIA, Ill. – If you haven’t started thawing your Thanksgiving turkey yet, and you plan on deep-frying it this year, you’re almost out of time.

That’s according to Peoria Fire Chief Shawn Sollberger, who tells 25 News water from turkeys not completely thawed, and the cooking oils used in deep-fryers, just don’t mix.

“The worst thing that you can do with any grease, outside of the turkey itself, is add water,” Sollberger said.

Sollberger advises thawing a turkey for at least three to four days before putting it in a deep fryer. Deep fryers should be kept far away from your house and garage, and used on grass.

Another good tip: if you’re not doing the cooking, stay out of the kitchen.

“Especially when you’re cooking for a lot of people, and you’ve got a lot going on, if you can keep the children out of the kitchen, it’s such an advantage,” Sollberger said.

One big piece of advice, always keep an eye on what you’re cooking.

“If you get that call at midnight, one o’clock, two o’clock in the morning, and it sounds like it’s food on the stove, that’s our number one concern, is that someone probably started cooking and they fell asleep,” said Sollberger. “You have the potential of dealing with two separate issues: the fire, then a rescue.”