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I had a long conversation with Jimmy of Jimmy's Roll Back Service twenty years ago. He was towing my car on his rollback vehicle from Whiteville, Virginia where my car broke down, to Charlotte NC, which was as far as he could take it based on my insurance coverage. I had a son living outside of Charlotte at that time so that was an acceptable option. Jimmy was an interesting man who had had a very hard life. He didn't know I was a physician until he tried to describe some of the medical problems he had dealt with and I said that sounds like Steven-Johnson's syndrome to me and he got very excited. Yes, you are right he said. We bonded over that exchange I guess.
We talked about his life on the road. The majority of his life was based on countless hours and days delivering cars that could be placed on a rollback vehicle and transported everywhere and anywhere around our vast nation. He was very proud of the fact that he always ate well. He had learned that if he wrapped a beef roast with some potatoes and carrots in a foil packet and placed it near the front manifold of his truck, he had a meal that was better than anything a truck stop could sell.
So I am curious, if you had to feed yourself on a meal you put in a foil packet, what would you put in it?
Discussion (25)
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According to my youngest brother the truck driver, although he hasn't driven long-haul with a sleeper cab etc for about 10 years, it is (or at least was) fairly common for long-haul truckers to have a DC-powered "oven" that would slow-cook meals in standard-size aluminum pans for up to several hours. Some drivers prepared their own, but many larger truck stops also sold pre-made meals in pans that could just be bought, cooked, and eaten.
There could be a pretty large variety of options, depending on where you were, but roast beef, potatoes, and carrots was a common one. I've made the same thing in a crock pot myself, using new potatoes, baby carrots, and pearl onions.
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I couldn't even imagine doing this.
1. I have no clue where the front manifold is. Is there a rear manifold? Or a side manifold?
2. How would you know when it was done? Time, miles, speed, outside temperature?
3. What happens when you hit a pothole and your potroast is out on the highway for the buzzards?
When we travel I make turkey sandwiches and put them in a small cooler. We can eat while still moving on down the road.
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'Tin Foil Stew' can be very good. Don't need to cook it with heat from a truck engine, an oven or a campfire works just fine. One recipe:
--Pieces of stew beef, roast beef, or steak
--Potatoes
--Carrots
--Onions
--Celery
--Butter
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That's always the case with families, but truck drivers are usually alone.
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Usually but not always. I've known people who made it a family activity, though not when it would interfere with school. And sometimes the family consisted of just ma and pa.
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