WWII Field Kitchen Overview

The GI Field Kitchen during WWII was part of the Company HQ, designed to serve 150-180 men. They intended to serve 2 hot meals per day: Breakfast & Supper, with Dinner (Lunch) as a combat ration. They were equipped with stoves, water heaters and mermite cans to deliver the hot food to the troops.

While sound in theory, often times in reality the kitchens had to make do with less equipment and were forced to adapt to the situations in which they were forced to operate. Despite this, mess staff did their best to keep the fighting man's body and morale fed.


Filmed at Rockford WWII Days 2018

Special thanks to Nick Yi Photography: https://www.nickyi.com/

Facebook:   / tristatelivinghistoryassociation  

Website: https://www.tslha.org/

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Print Sources:

TM 10-405 (Apr 24, 1942) - The Army Cook

TM 10-406 (Nov 22, 1943) - Cooking Dehydrated Foods

TM 10-400 (Nov, 1944) - Stoves, Ranges, Ovens, and Cooking Outfits

TM 10-701 (Dec, 1945) - Range, Field M-1937

T/O 7-17 (Sept 1, 1942): http://www.hardscrabblefarm.com/ww2/

Footage Sources:

The Battle of San Pietro - John Huston (1945)

TF 10-1237 - Rations in the Combat Zone Part 1 - Fighting Food

TF 10-1215 - Rations in the Combat Zone Part 2 - Unit Messing

TF 10-2454 - Unit Messing in the Field

TF 10-1202 - Baking in the Field Part 1 - The M1942 Field Baking Unit


MISC 1282 - Quartermaster Activities in the European Theater

Picture Sources:

185th Field Artillery, 34th ID from the H. Smith collection: http://34thinfantry.com/photos.html#