It's a Team's Life

Cooking in the Truck Team vs Solo

By Linda Caffee
Posted Jun 25th 2020 7:13AM

I have found it funny how we all look at situations differently.  While talking to a friend that drives solo, he did not understand the big deal of cooking a meal when done driving for the day.  He reasoned that this was a great time to relax, cook, and eat a quiet, peaceful meal in his truck at the end of the day.  As a team driver at the end of a shift, the truck usually does not stop moving.  When the other driver takes over, the truck keeps on going down the road.  Could the truck stop as we change drivers to eat?  Yes, it could. In our situation, we switch drivers at 3 and 3, and that schedule does not work for either of us to eat at 3 in the afternoon or 3 in the morning. 

Bob, who starts driving around three in the afternoon, likes to have lunch as he prepares for his driving shift.  When I get done driving, I catch up on paperwork and then heat my dinner and relax before bed.  If we did not have these premade meals, we would be eating fast food or junk so that we could keep heading to our destination. We would also stop more often to get these meals.

In our situation, I plan and cook on the weekend when doing a 34-hour restart. First, I create a grocery list of the meals I want to cook ahead for the week.  Very seldom do I make elaborate meals and I plan recipes using my Instant Pot and Air Fryer.  Once I have cooked a meal, I divide it into one serving baggies that are easy to grab and heat up in the microwave.  Baggies are used as they take up less room than a plastic container. I also make extra that I will freeze for meals at a later date.

Creating meals and storing them in baggies allows Bob to heat up his lunch while I am still behind the wheel and eat before he starts driving.  When I am done driving, I do not have to worry about cooking.  This works great during the week and is convenient for us.

In the past, on the weekends, we were always ready to get out of the truck and sit down to a meal in a restaurant.  After several months of not having the choice of ordering a meal and being able to relax outside of the truck, I have come to realize I do not miss it.  Sitting down to a relaxing meal in the truck where it is quiet with no sounds of a TV or someone watching a show on their phone, listening to the talk at the driver’s counter has become something I look forward to. We have been on the road for a little over three months and we have had fast food meals twice. 

I hope we never fall back to our old habits of going inside the truck stop for a meal unless it is to join our friends at a table to swap stories.  Not only do we always have a homemade meal to warm up, but we also save money.

Enchilada Meatballs – Instant Pot

Add Meatballs, Enchilada Sauce, Rotel, and pressure cook for a short period of time as the meatballs are already cooked.  Add cheese of your choice to top before serving. 

Bob & Linda Caffee

TeamCaffee

Saint Louis MO

Expediters since January 2005

[email protected]

 

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