What are you cooking that requires temperatures over 375? What kind of oil are you using that works well at those temperatures?

375 should be plenty hot. It is certainly above the "smoke point" of some oils. I've only worked in smaller restaurants, but I don't ever remember turning the smaller commercial deep fryers I've used higher than 375 (I can't remember if they actually went higher).

I have a Presto Dual Basket ProFry at home and am pretty happy with it. The 375 setting has definitely been hot enough for everything I've cooked. I actually have to turn it down lower for certain items like fatter doughnuts so that they don't end up golden brown on the outside and raw on the inside.

If yours doesn't work properly at the 375 degree setting consider one of the following:
1. Your fryer isn't actually heating all the way up to 375. You might want to get a frying thermometer and check what temp it's really heating up to.
2. You are putting too many things into your little fryer at once thereby dropping the oil temperature too rapidly so that it goes well below 325 degrees and doesn't recover quickly back to the proper temp which can make fried foods turn out nasty and greasy.
3. Your fryer does actually heat to 375, but doesn't heat very quickly, so even if you don't overfill it, it's still not heating back up to the proper temp rapidly enough to fry properly.
HTH - looking forward to seeing what others say.

The key to deep frying is temperature control -- which takes a lot of care and attention at home. IMHO, an emersion thermometer is imperative as is a timer. 375 is fine but the bugaboo is heat-loss/heat-regain upon immersion of the food. This is where most "fry-daddy" type devices fall down. 110v with a small quantity of oil is a joke. Many/most home-fryers I know of seem clueless about this. They put in vast quantities of food all at once and can't figure out why it doesn't cook right. Oil choice and heat control is everything.

I prepare u-15 shrimp and halibut chunks for my gang with some frequency. I use about 3 1/2 quarts of peanut oil in a pan about 1/2-full with oil to allow bubble-up. Immersion-time in small batches on my stove at 375-400 is about two minutes. I monitor oil temperature constantly. Finish on a rack in the oven at 300 as the total quantity to be served accumulates. The later batches that don't get much oven time, I fry longer to equalize. Overcooked shrimp or fish is awful, so some planning and care is needed if you're feeding a group.

The results have become somewhat legendary in my extended family because nobody else they know does it. Lots of fun, but cleanup is huge.

I've found the my oil is good for 3-4 uses before needing exchange. Lower temps would make it last longer but lower than 375 gives lousy results.

Oil used for fish shouldn't be used for anything else.

Potatoes, chicken, or other choices require different times, but temperature control remains paramount.

There is the Anvil countertop fryer, Admiral craft, Ceicil ware, Nemco and then there is the Waring DF 250 which is very easy to find and very popular with great reviews and is more mainstream at home than the others which are semi pro models.

The real problem with home fryers is that a standard 117 VAC outlet simply does not provide enough power.

Myself, I use a wok on my Bluestar range and a Taylor 5983N candy and Fryer thermometer (about $10). I get pretty good results, and cleanup is easy, in part because the thermometer is DW safe. That only leaves the wok and a spider to clean.

If I wanted a decent dedicated fryer for home use, and if you have or can easily get a 220 volt circuit to the kitchen, I would look at the Anvil FFA 8010 or FFA 8110. They are 2500 Watt units, as opposed to 1800 Watt units on 117 VAC. The Anvil units are decently made and easy to clean, plus you can use the included tub to store the oil in, eliminating one potential mess of pouring oil from one container to another.

Taylor thermometer (scroll down about 1/2 of the page): http://www.taylorusa.com/consumer/thermo/kitchenth.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Anvil Fryers

I am lucky to have this...the Miele built in. It keeps perfect temps and is so easy to wipe up after and the oil keeps well for months inside. Fast preheat and return to maintain after food added. DS1 was amazed it is exactly as good as his at the restaurant.

cpovey, I can't convince my wife to use gas. She fears an oil fire. Any reason why you don't use your cooktek induction? It also has high output (higher than Anvil) so it should work well. No?

Trailrunner...what a wonderful set-up for deep-frying!

Also notice in the picture what appears to be an impressive overhead venting system.

Forgot to mention that in my post. If you don't have one, the interior of your kitchen and everything in it will become coated with oily residue. Another important consideration for deep-frying.

Also keying on amirm's comment about fearing oil fire. This is no joke! Several quarts of 375F oil is inherently hazardous. Having a dedicated deep-fryer as in the picture is inherently safer than using a pot on the stove like I do. More than fire danger, the risk to human flesh of having that pot spill is not to be taken lightly....especially if there are kids around.

asolo...yep I would never deep fry and didn't in the 37 years I have been cooking til I got this. Now we do it all the time. We have a 1400 cfm Tradewind with a remote blower and inline silencer. It is wonderful and quiet even on high. I always am amazed at the baffles when I put them in the dishwasher each Sunday night. They are covered with oil...so that was getting on everything in my house for 37 years !!! Sheesh...I am so glad we have this setup. I have never yet wiped the painted wooden hood off...there has yet to be the first drop of oil on it and we stirfry regularly. So it is a great and safe set up. CAroline