cooking in the truck

A friend of mine gave me that thing a few years ago for the house. I never used it, and gave it away before I moved outta NJ. It's BIG. Plus, I wouldn't be able to use it in the truck because of the amount of "juice" that it would pull. All I can use in this prostar is a 400 watt power inverter, and if I try to watch the TV and surf the laptop at the same time, the inverter starts whining. So, old fashioned fire works well for me. I would like to get the butane tabletop model burner, it would be more stable, but I've got the cooking thing down to a science. Spill some hot liquid or burn your leg on that propane thing, and you quickly learn how to get super organized when it comes time to cook. lol! The trick is to have everything ready and prepared....and plates and containers set out to transfer the hot food to. There can be no stumbling around looking for stuff. I haven't tried cooking outside of the truck yet...now with the weather becoming more favorable, I just may try it.

 

I keep all my cookware clean but I don't fry anything - I am vegetarian - and don't use much oil in my cooking (which is not healthy anyway). I carry some water for rinsing my pots and pan and use paper towel to wipe them off. The residue of food (if there's any) I wipe them off and toss them in the garbage and rinse the rest off outside the truck. And I clean it all right after I'm done with cooking and eating cause the longer I wait, the harder it will be to get the dirt out. I don't leave any mess anywhere.

 

Thank God for you guys! I will be using all of these tips!

 

Same way the old one's did it a long time ago. Go to Walmart, get a plastic dish tub... they look about the size of a kitchen sink. Get your drinking water in gallon bottles - its cheaper, and a bottle of dish detergent.

I think you can figure out the rest. Best to use a paper towel for scrubbin...

 

I carry a 6 gallon water container on the floor in front of the passenger seat, and keep dish detergent in the passenger door storage spot. Makes a nice washing station by just walking around and opening the passenger door.

My dog is fastidious about cleaning up the leftovers, so washing up is a piece of cake.

 

FASTIDIOUS? Thats a big word for a trucker! Are you sure your not a spy from dispatch?...............................

 

Dispatch? HAHAHA!!

What makes you think dispatchers know the alphabet?

 

I used one of these back when I drove

http://www.amazon.com/Deluxe-Butane-Burner-Stove-Free/dp/B000BVC4NY

Best I remember propane is a big no no. It's heavier than air so it will pool up in the truck if it leaks. Also, you are not allowed in tunnels with propane on board. The butane can be purchased at the large sports outfitter, their parking lots are big truck friendly. I rarely used it inside the truck. I would either use it on the catwalk or on a cement table at a rest area. I had a cast iron skillet that really doesn't need to be clean and a stainless pan for soups and such. I would wash them in the rest area restrooms. I had a 12v cooler that worked pretty good. It will cool stuff to about 40 degrees below ambient temp of the cab. Also the lunch box 12v cookers are great. It's like a small crockpot so most crockpot recipes will work. As someone mentioned above the liners are much cheaper at a super market. When I drove I had one of those pocket truck stop books. I would put little marks next to the truckstops.
G= groceries within walking distance
P= big parking lot
B= Bar within walking distance

etc.

Remember walmart has to get it's trucks in, so you can get your truck in. You may not be welcome, but you can get in.

 

I use disposable whenever possible. The aluminum inserts I my lunchbox cooker sometimes double as serving containers. Crockpot liners for my crockpot. I don't use an open flame anything inside my truck so frying pans or pots are not an issue.

When I can't use disposables I clean my utensils and stuff with clorox clean-up. Cleans and santitizes at the same time. You have to be careful with it, because it will whiten anything it comes in contact with..

 

You might want to read the cautionary verbage about internal consumption of clorox too... just sayin.