How Do You Cook in a VW Bus?

How do you cook in a VW bus? Early buses argued that you didn't. Early buses are designed so the cook stands outside using a portable stove placed on a fold-up folding table attached just above the spice rack.

A later Vanagon interior with cooking
accessories inside along the wall.

Things changed in 1976 with the redesign of the interior. Now, instead of cooking standing outside, cooking was brought inside with kitchen accessories including fridge, sink, stove and cabinetry placed along the interior wall behind the driver's seat.

There is something to be said for each school of thought. Having a complete kitchen inside, though a small one, makes it easy to get up, start the coffee, fry the eggs and bacon, and get on with the day just like at home. The same goes for dinner.

But some will argue, do you really wish to cook inside vehicle at all?  Maybe. Maybe not. How much grease do you want floating around?

The outdoor approach as shown in this 1972 brochure has the sink, folding table, spice rack, water supply and refrigerator/ice box at the door. Just visible inside is the fold-up table on the back wall. The interior table can be set while the chef prepares the meal standing outside.

The refrigerator door is hinged to be accessible from the outside. A portable stove, of course, has many advantages. It can be used on the fold-up table shown in the brochure. It can also be placed on a picnic table at some distance. Often this makes the most sense.

Almost all early buses had an icebox and not a refrigerator. A few had refrigerators that were sometimes loud and noisy and run on propane or 12 volt.

A 12-volt 1.5 cubic Norcold refrigerator
 replaces the original  icebox.

In my bus the original ice box has been replaced by a Norcold 12-volt unit of almost the exact same size. In it powered by an auxiliary battery which in turn is charged by a solar panel

There are pros and cons to both indoor and outdoor approaches. Cooking outside in cold, wet and windy weather is no fun, and sometimes impossible. On the other hand thinking of the entire outdoors as an extension of your kitchen is a good way to not feel all cramped up in a vehicle that at 14-feet in length is shorter than a Toyota Camry.

Either way the most important thing is to plan meals in advance making sure you have all the ingredients, cookware, etc. needed.  For those who live in a bus it is important to plan good, hearty and well-balanced meals. It makes travel and living in a bus all that much more enjoyable. It takes time, effort and sometimes a bit of ingenuity. But well worth it.

Boeuf bourguignon anyone?  Next: laundry and housekeeping.

JNR