Field Kitchen Impressions

[Rubberducky]

No need to get a mess tent! You'll already getting them hot chow. Not need to pamper them

Just get a field kitchen with a fly over to keep the kitchen dry. The soldiers will find their own way to eat their chow. Maybe there are some pictures from the bocage tour of the field kitchen. We had a GMC with a field kitchen behind it and about 50 k-ration krates.
They kitchen guys had to supply food for about 150 guys and they sure as hell did a great job! You won't be needing any tent to sit under. You'r just bloody happy to get some food after a long day.

[tcorp]

Roger that No need to pamper the GI's. I always appreciate some one cooking me hot chow. I'll find a place to eat it. This is one of what I think is the necessary impressions out there. I'm glad to see people interested in it.

[odjeep54]

I am in agreement with tcorp, the only time I would ever even consider dealing with a mess tent is if I am cooking for a large public event where you are trying to recreate an encampment. (a large encampment at that!) if it's a tactial, it wouldn't even cross my mind. the real question is, what are you trying to get out of this? I imagine it's some combination of the following:

1. get you troops a hot meal once in a while
2. learn for yourself about feeding troops in WWII
3. develop a field kitchen impression for public events

for 1 , you'll get out of it what you put into it. for a few hundred dollars, you should be able to keep the doggies happy. Most of the time, when the troops were lucky enough to get a hot meal, it was brought from battalion/regimental trains up to the front. The kitchen is almost irrelevant. concentrate on what you need to serve, not cook.

for 2, it's research. keep scouring the net, get your hands on all of the TM's you can. one of the things I enjoy is trying to re-create the recipies in the army cookbook. the '46 version has a whole section on "B" ration recipies. For a recient event, I made a breakfast of powdered eggs with canned bacon, lyonnaise potatoes (made with dehydrated potatoes and dehydrated onions) how many guys under 30 have actually tasted powdered eggs? (My unit has) I reciently put together a respectible 10 in 1 ration. here are some of the things that are still available if you look hard enough:

canned chicken (big cans)
canned ground beef (big cans)
canned roast beef
powdered eggs (canned)
dehydrated vegetables (canned)
canned butter
canned cheese
canned oj
6 lb cans of corned beef
canned jam (pie filling)

most of the food that was prepared by the field kitchens was commercially available, and purchased by the army. The army spice pack is filled with those square metal spice cotainers from companies like McCormack, (I also have one of those square metal containers from McCormack from wwII that contains insect powder, I try not to confuse the two). look in antique shops for period coffee cans, lard cans, boxes, etc.. I have a picture of a stateside food dump during the carolina manuvers, it looks like a supermarket exploded.

I will try, in the next few days, to put together a post in the ration section saying where I found these foods.

3. No way around this one, It's going to be expensive, and take a long time. some items can be reasonably substituted with more modern items, (for instance, m67 immersion heaters instead of the WWII version) it all depends on how much inaccuracy you are willing to accept.
only you can be the judge of that. just remember, if someone gives you crap about the date on an aluminum pot you are serving them dinner out of, remind them they always have an alternative to not eat if it bothers them!

[Schiller]

I'm sorry if it has been mentioned already. But possibly a cheaper, and easier on transport, would be choosing to do a 20-Man Cooking Outfit. Its 2 Coleman 523 duel Burner Stoves, with an assorted mix of pots pans and a cutlary roll. It all packs into a single duffel bag carried on a Packboard. This is something the I'm in is hopeing to get together sometime in the future.

I think this would be more ideal for smaller reenacting units instead of investing in a field range m1937. Having to transport it alone would be a pain I think.

[tentha86]

We use a "small unit cook set" for cooking for up to 30 guys easily. Plan your meals in advance - finish one & it's time to start on the next meal - but always a crowd pleaser for public and combat events.

We use a rain fly for cover - crates for tables and it always goes over well.

[doc101]

Just wanted to add...we have a member who does a heck of a Mess Sgt imp. He put together a field kitchen and works off the trailer on his jeep.

Now..if you purchase an immersion heater, you MUST get training on it! They are gasoline fueled, have a propensity to go "bang" and shoot a flame out of the chimney. They are dangerous and not a safe way to go. Better to use some bleach solution and ensure that the mess kits get dried out than risk burns.

Please be careful. It sounds like you got some good information from the rest of the posters. Make sure that all is cleaned and sanitary.

[Barrelhunter]

"Chow: A Cook's Tour of Military Food" by Paul Dickson is a fantastic asset also. Out of print now but can still be found surfing the net.

www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?&isbn=0452251850&nsa=1

[seabeepo3]

If you start providing a mess tent in the field, then they'll start demanding chairs, then they'll want tables. Next thing you know, you're setting up fine china and crystal and waiting on them with a towel over your left arm!

[Ranger44]

For anone out there looking for an instant field kitchen found this on e-bay

cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120071333666&ssPageName=MERCOSI_VI_ROSI_PR4_PCN_BIX_Stores&refitem=120061644016&itemcount=4&refwidgetloc=closed_view_item&refwidgettype=osi_widget

Ranger44

[privypiper2002]

And a copy of TM 10-405. the Army Cook.

Recipies and all.

[bangorbrownie]

Jul 4, 2006 11:09:13 GMT -5 K. Schulte said:

can anyone else chip in?

You want the 33rd Signal Battalion - Chad Philip's group. Also, The Big Red One (Mid atlantic group) - Charlie Kern. Both units have done beau coup research

[wildazchef]

I started a yahoo group about Mess kitchens where we all share best practices dealing with feeding the troops. Here is a link for anyone interested.

groups.yahoo.com/group/Messkitchens/

[vshooter]

If you are looking for a WWII Field kitchen at the Planes of Fame air museum in Chino California there is the 475th Fighter Group Museum. In that museum is a field kitchen that my brother and I assembled for display to the memory of our father who was a plank member of the group and mess sgt. for the 432nd FS. His mess also fed the HQ officers and staff. On the day the of the grand opening of the museum my brother and I pulled the field kitchen out of display and fed the 475th reunion crowd plus the P of F museum staff lunch. It took several years to assemble the kitchen then. The tinned steel utensils are the hardest to find and when you do find any they have gone to rust and need retinning. The last the I looked for a M1937 Field range I found a few in Norway, but that was years ago.