TikTok is no stranger to questionable cooking hacks. For years, the inhabitants of Arizona have been taking to TikTok to show off their summer car-cooking skills. And now, with global warming causing more widespread heat waves than ever before, people across the globe are hopping on the car-cooking trend with unprecedented fervor. I mean, Texas car-cookies are making headline news just about everywhere.
Now, fair warning, I wouldn’t exactly suggest cooking anything in your car, let alone baking cookies in carsWhen you’re dealing with any dish made with eggs, milk, and meat, having them sit in your car for three to four hours to cook is the perfect breeding ground for bacteria (eggs and ground meat need to be cooked at at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit). With that in mind, unless you’re carefully monitoring the temperature in your car, please avoid cooking foods with any ingredients that spoil easily. Instead of a regular cookie recipe, try a vegan option. That way, you’re not risking food poisoning and still get to take part in the viral trend.
Joe Brown’s account is almost completely dedicated to cooking things in his car with the help of the Arizona heat. He’s even baked cookies and a pizza in an Arizona mailbox. He’s also well known for melting gummy versions of food in his car, so that dashboard of his has seen a lot of damage over the years.
To be honest, there’s nothing I like more than DIY cooking hacks. I’m often out of different ingredients, and occasionally, due to my lack of mechanical ability, my oven isn’t working. Car-cooking is definitely not my first choice, but it’s good to know I have a back-up. As it turns out, you can cook tons of different meals in your car if the temperature’s right.
How to bake eggs in your car
First, don’t. But if you insist, here’s what you need to know. To become firm, an egg needs a temp of at least 158 degree Fahrenheit. That allows the eggs proteins to denature, which is essential to the cooking process. The temperature needs to remain the same throughout the cooking process, for safety, so be conscious of that while cooking an egg in your car. In the video below, the whole process took about an hour.
How to bake meat in your car
Again, don’t. But here’s what I learned from TikTok. The meat needs to reach an internal temp of at least 145 degrees Fahrenheit. In the Japanese heat wave, it took three hours for a seasoned and tin-foil wrapped steak to cook properly.
How to bake cookies in your car
To get your car smelling like a bakery, you’ll need your car to be at about 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Leave your dough balls in there for four hours, and voilà, you’ve got cookies.
For the record, I don’t suggest doing any baking cookies in cars or cooking eggs on the pavement. It’s impressive, a little scary, and odd, but definitely not delicious.