I've never dried off the bird particularly; if you don't dunk it until the oil is around 250, it typically drops the temp down to near 212 (100C) and the water

I've never dried off the bird particularly; if you don't dunk it until the oil is around 250, it typically drops the temp down to near 212 (100C) and the water boils off pretty gently. The real issue is if you have ice, which is often present in big chunks.