Glenn9643
Veteran Member
One of my friends who has a welding shop stopped by the house Christmas eve. We visit back and forth with them fairly often and generally I’ve been doing the grilling, steaks, etc because I was set up better for that and they fried the fish. He sold his house last year and has been living in a trailer while building a new one so most of the cooking during that time has been at our place. I guess he got to feeling sorry for me trying to keep from burning the grease or tired of hearing me complain about my cooker sooting up my pots.
He built us a fish cooker and delivered it for Christmas! I’ve always used fryers that involved a pot sitting over a flame but never again if I can help it. This is the best that I’ve seen and I thought I would share with the group.
I’ll post several pictures from different angles for anyone’s use that may want to build one.
Mine is a single-basket but he also builds larger double or triple basket versions. Uses commercial fryer baskets. Thermometer screws into a piece of pipe coupling welded into the front and the thermo element extends into the oil. The drain is a piece of 3/4 pipe welded into the bottom with a valve attached. There is a separate closeup of how the burner (small?? hole in a capped pipe) is attached. The setup requires a high-pressure regulator that will allow enough heat. The burn is contained within the 3” tubing that goes through the side of the cooker and is cut and welded to form two “nineties” ( [_] ) that exits back out from the cooker and is turned up for a vent pipe. The oil below the burner tubing within the cooker doesn’t get nearly as hot as the upper area. With the oil at 350 degrees you can hold your hand on the bottom of the cooker (but it is pretty warm!). This prevents any meal that drops off from burning and scorching the oil.
He built us a fish cooker and delivered it for Christmas! I’ve always used fryers that involved a pot sitting over a flame but never again if I can help it. This is the best that I’ve seen and I thought I would share with the group.
I’ll post several pictures from different angles for anyone’s use that may want to build one.
Mine is a single-basket but he also builds larger double or triple basket versions. Uses commercial fryer baskets. Thermometer screws into a piece of pipe coupling welded into the front and the thermo element extends into the oil. The drain is a piece of 3/4 pipe welded into the bottom with a valve attached. There is a separate closeup of how the burner (small?? hole in a capped pipe) is attached. The setup requires a high-pressure regulator that will allow enough heat. The burn is contained within the 3” tubing that goes through the side of the cooker and is cut and welded to form two “nineties” ( [_] ) that exits back out from the cooker and is turned up for a vent pipe. The oil below the burner tubing within the cooker doesn’t get nearly as hot as the upper area. With the oil at 350 degrees you can hold your hand on the bottom of the cooker (but it is pretty warm!). This prevents any meal that drops off from burning and scorching the oil.
