Patent ID: 6976596

Claim:
A supporting rack, comprising: a planar surface comprising a first and a second section, whereby each section is defined by a plurality of cross rods and a plurality of mutually engaged rods that are disposed perpendicularly to the cross rods; connection means adapted to allow connection of said planar surface sections to form a unitary planar supporting surface for supporting food or food containers; wherein said unitary planar supporting surface is structured to facilitate removable insertion into a cooking apparatus; wherein said connection means comprises the plurality of mutually engaged rods, said first and second sections being connected at at least one joint wherein said at least one joint being formed by insertion of an end portion of one of said plurality of mutually engaged rods of said first sections into an end portion of one of said plurality of mutually engaged rods of said second sections, a channel passes through each of said end portions of said mutually engaged rods of said first and second sections and the channels assume an in-line position when said sections are joined together, and the end portions are secured with at least one securing pin passing through the channels; and wherein said first and second surface sections are capable of being folded about said connection means or detached from each other to reduce the overall space occupied by the rack and to facilitate handling and storage of the rack.