Oily Bird Gets the Boot

The above-pictured marvel of modern engineering is also a bit of a Zen riddle: The Char-Broil Big Easy turkey fryer uses infrared heat instead of oil to cook up to a 16-pound bird. Technically speaking, there's no frying going on, no bubbling cauldron of noxious fat seeping through the tender breast of your beloved Butterball. What is the sound of one bird cooking? Monastery quiet, it is, with but a whisper of propane if you listen very closely.

Frying a turkey has its rewards -- a crisp exterior, abundant juices sealed within. The 18,000 Btu Big Easy takes care of that mandate and more: it cooks whatever's inside its cooking basket quickly and evenly, delivering a consistent result in a fraction of the time. Also, there are no hotspots to worry about -- the infrared heat penetrates the turkey in true democratic fashion. Breasts and thighs alike are done to perfection.

Any huge hunk of meat works in this well-designed dynamo: pork, beef, lamb, chicken -- the only thing it doesn't do well is individual chops and steaks. You can apply dry rubs or inject marinades, anything you'd do with a standard grill or barbecue. Cleanup is as the name states: simplicity itself. The only misnomer is that this thing is hardly statuesque, standing a mere two-feet tall. The Big Easy may be small, but it won't clog your arteries or send you to the burn ward. Turkey tastes so much better at home versus inside an ambulance, don't you think?