5 Tips for Easier, Cleaner Frying

The Jewish diaspora may not be of one mind about everything culinary (the legendary sweet versus savory matzo brei feud comes to mind), but when it comes to frying, we unite. The tasty Hanukkah custom entails deep-frying everything from jelly donuts to potato pancakes (latkes) for at least one night of the “festival of lights.”

Frying can feel intimidating to the uninitiated, but the right tools, ingredients and attitude can make all the difference. Though these tips are especially useful around Hanukkah, use them for any and all fried dishes year-round. Here are some tips so you don't cry while you fry. 

1. DON’T SPOIL THE OIL

Back away slowly from the extra virgin olive oil. Many foods fry best at a high temperature. This requires an oil with a high smoke point, which means the oil must be able to get pretty hot (we’re talking around 375 degrees F) without turning bitter or filling your kitchen with smoke. (Olive oil will generally fail.) Turn to canola, peanut or avocado oil for latkes, egg rolls or cutlets that will fry to a crisp before the oil soaks into the food and makes it soggy or leaden. 

2. SPLATTER MATTERS

Oil burns: They happen to the best of us. This year, collateral damage is, luckily, more avoidable. Use a Splatter Screen to keep limbs and countertops safer from jumping oil. For anything from frying chicken cutlets to sizzling sufganiyot (jelly donuts), the splatter screen is indispensable —and you'll love it for dumplings. (And have you met our aprons?)

3. BE GENEROUS 

No matter what you're frying, using enough oil is important. Do not skimp on the amount of oil if you want that shatteringly crisp crust on fried chicken. Whether you use a Dutch oven or a deeper sauté pan to fry, make sure the oil is deep enough to at least partially submerge whatever it is you're deep-frying. 

4. BIGGER IS BETTER

Overcrowding the cooking vessel is a major offender when it comes to all foods golden and crispy. Crowding the pan with too many dumplings (or what have you) brings down the temperature of the oil, which means it takes longer for the food to cook and makes it less light and crispy, more heavy and oil-logged. Commit to using a large enough vessel, like our 5.5 QT Hybrid Deep Sauté Pan, for fried food that will be consumed the exact second each batch finishes frying.

5. FOIL THE OIL ENEMY

Any culture that sees frying as its love language understands how important it is to foil your counters. Even with a splatter guard, there is a chance that some oil leaps out of the pan when the guard is removed to flip the latke or check the hand pie. When it does, the counters nearby are going to get slammed. Protect your peace and save yourself the cleaning by covering your counters (but not the stove itself, as that’s a fire hazard) with tinfoil.

Messy frying is so 2023. You’ve got this on lock.