Method and apparatus for cooking food in an enclosed chamber

A flat rigid pad having a central core of heat insulating material which supports two sheets of radiant heat reflecting material, such as foil, is removably located on the grate of an enclosed cooking chamber having a heat source in the bottom portion of the enclosed chamber. An uncovered cooking vessel containing food is located on the pad. The sheets of foil each have one shiny and highly reflective side, both facing in the same direction, so that the pad can be placed on the grill with both reflective surfaces directed downwardly toward the heat source in the chamber.

In the field of cooking food in an enclosed chamber, such as an oven or a 
barbeque grill, it is conventional for a heat source, such as a gas 
burner, charcoal or electric element, to be located at the bottom of the 
chamber and a horizontal grate to be located above the heat source. Food, 
for which a charred surface is not desired, is placed in a pan which is 
placed upon the grate. Heat generated by the heat source is applied 
directly to the pan and food by radiant energy and by heated air currents 
which naturally rise from the heat source. 
As a result of the direct heat application from below, food which is cooked 
in this manner tends to dry and requires basting at regular intervals to 
maintain moisture. This basting is time consuming for the cook, but more 
importantly, each time the oven or grill is opened, large amounts of heat 
escape from the cooking chamber. This heat loss is an undesirable expense 
and in addition increases the cooking time because the temperature in the 
chamber must be raised again to the cooking temperature after each basting 
operation. 
It is known in the field of cooking that convection cooking essentially 
overcomes the need for regular basting. In convection ovens, heated air is 
forced to move violently throughout the chamber, often by a fan, providing 
an even cooking process as well as a very pleasant browning effect upon 
the cooked food. Such ovens, however, are specially built to be used only 
for convection cooking. 
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a removable pad for 
use in cooking in a conventional enclosed cooking chamber, at a 
temperature of about 350.degree.-400.degree. F., such as an oven or 
barbeque grill which contains a heat source in the bottom portion of the 
enclosure, whereby food is cooked primarily by convection air currents 
rather than direct application of heat from below. 
It is also an object to provide a method of deflecting heated air currents 
and radiant heat from direct application to a pan and the food contained 
therein and of developing convection currents for the cooking of the food. 
It is a further object to provide a removable deflecting pad and a method 
associated therewith, which enables the ambient and convected heat from 
the fuel to move throughout the grill, contacting all exposed surfaces of 
the food being cooked. 
A still further object is to provide a deflector pad of the foregoing 
character which is simple in construction and is readily adapted to 
cooking vessels of nearly all kinds, and which is inexpensive and, while 
it is not of throw-away, or one-time use type, it is nevertheless so 
inexpensive that if it should be discarded after a few times of use, no 
serious loss would be incurred.

Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a well-known 
type of barbeque grill 10 having a bottom bowl 12 defining a pit 14 in 
which the heat source 16 is located, this fuel commonly being charcoal, 
gas or other material which becomes radiant or incandescent or red hot 
upon burning or electrification. For example, incandescent coal, commonly 
known as "coals" produces intense radiant heat used in the cooking. 
The grill includes a grate 18 mounted in the bottom part or bowl 12 
adjacent the top of the latter and above the heat source 16. The grill 
further generally includes a cover 20, and this feature is of significance 
in the use of the device of the present invention, as will be brought out 
in more detail hereinbelow, in forcing the convected heat currents to flow 
vigorously throughout the grill, contacting all exposed surfaces of food 
being cooked. 
A cooking vessel 22 is shown, this being in the form of a convectional pan, 
holding the food 24. Interposed between the pan 22 and heat source 16 is a 
planar pad, lying on the grate 18, the pan 22 being set directly on the 
pad. As will be referred to hereinbelow, the pad 26 is at least as large 
as the pan, but preferably not substantially larger. 
FIGS. 3 and 4 show the specific construction of one embodiment of the pad 
26. The pad includes a central core 28 of heat insulating material and 
bottom and top sheets 30, 32, respectively, of radiant heat reflecting 
material covering the central core. The central core 28 is preferably 
asbestos, of a kind known in the trade as asbestos mill board. A sheet 
such as on the order of 3/32" thickness is suitable for this purpose. This 
dimension is of course not critical and a wide range of dimensions is 
permissible within the practice of the invention. The asbestos material is 
pressed and compacted and forms a relatively stiff, rigid, and 
self-sustained article. 
The heat reflecting sheets, 30, 32 may be of suitable metallic foil, 
preferably aluminum, and one side of the sheet material is highly 
reflective, or shiny. The other side of each sheet 30 and 32 is of lower 
reflectivity, as a brushed metal. The central core 28 is covered by these 
sheets 30 and 32 as represented in FIG. 4, which shows a simple 
construction. The bottom sheet 30 may be congruent with the central core, 
for example, and the top sheet 32 provided with extended marginal edge 
portions 36 which underlie the under surface of the bottom sheet 30. These 
marginal portions 36 are then crimped to the edge portions of the bottom 
sheet 30 and no further securing means need be utilized. 
As indicated above, each of the foil sheets 30, 32 have one side that is 
highly reflective, or shiny. The sheets are arranged with both of the 
shiny sides facing in the same direction, the top sheet 32 having a shiny 
under side 38 and a brushed metal upper side 40, while the corresponding 
sides of the bottom sheet are indicated at 42, 44. The pad is placed on 
the grate with both shiny surfaces 38 and 42 directed downwardly, toward 
the heat source. FIG. 4 shows a portion of the top sheet 32 peeled away to 
expose the surface 38 which is highly reflective, and the less reflective 
surface 40. 
FIG. 5 shows an alternate detail construction of a pad, and in particular 
of the means of securing the foil sheets on the central core 28. The 
central core is shown and the two foil sheets 30, 32 fitted thereover with 
the marginal edge portions of substantial length. These are then folded 
over one another forming a full and tighter attachment. 
In both the construction of FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 the foil sheets are folded 
under the bottom of the pad. Thus, in the event that there is any 
spattering or leaking of liquid from the pan, the liquid will run off the 
pad and not contact the core. 
The pad 26 is a single, unitary, and effectively integral article. The 
central core of asbestos 28, as mentioned above, is rigid, and the 
addition of the sheets of foil 30, 32 add to this rigidity of the article. 
The pad is very thin as compared with the various articles such as the 
cooking vessel, etc., and is easy to stack or store, together with a 
number of others, when not in use. 
The pan 22 may be of aluminum, pans of this kind being well-known at the 
present time. In the present case, the pan 22 is provided with 
corrugations 48 in the bottom element, on which the food 24 rests, the 
juice or grease from the food being indicated at 50, which is represented 
herein in the form of liquid, this fact being significant in the use of 
the shield or pad. Additional liquid, such as wine, may also be added in 
the pan. 
When the cooking vessel is exposed directly to the coals, as has heretofore 
usually been the case, the bottom element of the cooking vessel absorbs 
both radiant heat and convectional heat, thus becoming exceedingly 
hot--much hotter than the convected currents in the grill. Such heat 
encountered normally quickly burns any drippings that exude from the food 
and fall on the bottom of the pan, and fumes from this burning are usually 
acrid and very obnoxious. They, of course, do not remain liquid since they 
are burned. In the present case, although the foil sheet 30 reflects a 
substantial portion of the radiant heat, and deflects the convection air 
currents, a portion of the heat is absorbed by the foil. The heat 
insulating material of the central core 28 serves to prevent conduction of 
this absorbed heat to the pan. The reflective surface 38 serves to further 
limit the heat applied to the bottom of the pan. The cooking vessel 
remains sufficiently cool that the drippings or grease remain in liquid 
form as represented in FIG. 3. 
The foil sheets 30 and 32 reflect substantially all of the radiant heat 
directed from the heat source toward the bottom of the pan. Such foil 
reflects such heat, and the reflecting function in the present instance is 
greater than normal by directing both highly reflective or shiny surfaces 
of the foil sheets downwardly toward the coals to more efficiently reflect 
the radiant heat. The multiple sheets greatly enhance the reflecting 
effect. 
The pad 26 preferably is pre-dimensioned so as to be at least as large as 
the area of the pan 22 which is exposed to radiant heat from the heat 
source. However, it is desired that the pad not be materially larger than 
this exposed area of the pan so as to enable the maximum movement or flow 
of the deflected convection currents in the space within the grill. Thus 
the greater the space surrounding the cooking vessel, the greater will be 
the freedom of movement of the deflected hot air currents. 
Correspondingly, the pad 26 should not be materially greater than the 
dimensions of the pan in keeping with the desire of maximum space 
surrounding the cooking vessel or pan. 
As indicated above, the pad 26 is placed flat on the grate 18 directly 
above the heat source, and then the open pan 22, with the food therein, is 
simply set on the shield or pad and the chamber is closed. 
The pad 26 is of utmost simplicity both in the materials utilized in its 
make-up, and the steps of fabricating it. The sheet of asbestos is very 
inexpensive, and the sheets of reflective material are also relatively 
inexpensive, and thus the pads can be assembled with the utmost 
simplicity. Consequently, a person may easily provide himself with a 
relatively large number of such pads, of various sizes so as to 
accommodate all of various size cooking vessels. The pads are easily 
cleaned if they become soiled and while they need not be of throw-away 
character, they are so inexpensive that if any should be lost or otherwise 
debilitated after only a few times of use, the loss will not be great. 
Cooking in grills of this type is highly desired by many people and the 
flavor and taste of the food so obtained is very favorable to those 
people. The liquid drippings or grease, indicated at 50, when the food is 
cooked according to the present method is desirable for further use, e.g., 
for use in making gravy, etc. This advantage did not exist in the case 
where the food was cooked by previous methods where the drippings 
ordinarily burned and the residue became solid. The aroma from these 
drippings adds to the flavor of the food being cooked, thus producing a 
further advantage. 
As is well-known, additional flavor is often desired in the barbeque-type 
of cooking, such as by providing hickory chips, in the fuel. Employing the 
present invention, convection currents cause the smoke from all of the 
fuel, including the hickory chips, to intimately contact the food and this 
adds to the taste of the food. The preservation of the food in unburnt 
condition, by the use of the pad in accordance with the present invention, 
also imparts greater benefit to the food from the hickory chips or other 
fuel additives. 
The use of a grill of this type, i.e., having a cover 20, confines the 
vapors so that they add taste and aroma to the food. 
Another great advantage is that when the device of this invention is used, 
the user, after placing the food in position for cooking, may simply 
ignore the matter until the cooking period has concluded. For example, 
there is no need for basting or providing a rotisserie or in other ways 
moving the food to prevent burning since the heat from the fuel is 
distributed evenly over the food, and the intense and concentrated heat 
previously provided by the radiant heat is eliminated. 
While a preferred embodiment of the method and apparatus of the present 
invention has been illustrated and described, it will understood that 
changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the 
invention in its broader aspects. 
Various of the features of the invention are defined in the following 
claims.