1. Storing Hot Food on the Go
- Wrap your food in tin foil and a towel. Without electricity, tin foil is one of the easiest ways to give your food short-term warmth. First, put your food in a sealed container. Next, wrap thick tin foil around the food and be careful not to leave any holes where warm air can escape. Finally, wrap 2-3 towels tightly around the food and foil.
- Depending on the food, this can keep things nice and toasty for anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.
- If you don’t have thick tin foil, wrap multiple layers of regular tin foil instead.
- Not only does this method trap steam, but it’ll also reflect heat back as well.
2. Keep soups and stews in an insulated thermos
- Transfer your soup into a tall thermos while it is still piping hot. Secure the lid tightly as soon as you’re finished putting your food inside. Eat your food within 4 hours so it doesn’t cool down and develop bacteria.
- Look at the thermos’ packaging to determine how long you can safely store food inside.
- Thermoses are typically only sized for a single serving.
3. Purchase insulated thermal bags for larger dishes
- Similar to the bags used for pizza delivery, thermal bags allow you to store dishes so they retain heat while you’re on the go. Cover your hot dish with a lid or foil wrap before securing it in the bag. Use a thermal bag for a maximum of 3 hours before serving your dish.[2]
- Thermal bags can be purchased at big box stores or at your local kitchen specialty store. Reusable and disposable bags are available.
4. Get a portable food warmer to keep foods warm in your car.
- Find an insulated lunchbox or cooler that can plug into the cigarette lighter jack inside your car. Fill the cooler with hot food and plug it in as you travel. The cooler will use the energy from your car to keep the food at a safe temperature.[3]
- Only have the cooler plugged in as your car is running so you don’t drain your car’s battery.
- Check the voltage requirement on the bag to see if your cigarette lighter can output that much energy. If not, you may cause the cooler to short out.
