That you can buy accessories for your much-loved antique automobile is nothing new. Some are good, some are bad, others are just plain useless. But some are born out of a crazy idea and then prove very useful. One such accessory is the cooker that fits over the exhaust manifold of a Model T Ford and allows you to cook a meal while driving. Don Buesing has one on his Model T and explains how it works: “Stop at a supermarket, purchase various cuts of beef, seasonings, onions, etc. To keep the beef from sticking to the cooker wrap it in aluminium foil (click!). Place in the cooker. To promote heat transfer, add water to the bottom of the cooker where it steams. Occasionally it is necessary to stop... to baste, add water, and turn the beef. After an hour or so of driving the meal is ready.” There are lots of recipes like “pot roast”, “fowled plug chicken”, “broken fan belt baked beans”, “corn on the carb” and many others. Our favourite is Meat Loaf. It goes like this: "Mix one pound of lean ground beef with one package of frozen Potatoes O’Brian, one package of frozen Mexicorn and a jar of Salsa (you choose mild, medium, hot, or acetylene torch-like). Dump all ingredients in a big zip lock bag.  Mix well and then dump it all into a big piece of wide aluminium foil and wrap it into a loaf that will fit into the cooker. Drive about 40 miles or so and it will be done."
This recipe and others for the Model T Cooker were collected by Frank and Carole Fenton (andersontimer.com). I also found several other recipes by Lucille Walla (click for .pdf file).














October 27, 2007