What “thermos” food flask please?

[OMITN]

My 11 yo daughter spends a reasonable amount of time dancing each week (c20 hours). A couple of mid-week nights in the studio are long (4-9.30pm) so making sure she eats enough decent food is important.

One of her dance friends takes food in a flask one evening for when they have a short break between classes. Seems like good idea and our daughter likes curry. So…

I dug out my old Stanley 0.5L food flask, cleaned it and primed it with boiling water. Curry went in piping hot at 3.30 and she ate at 7.30ish. It was lukewarm. It was the same when I used it years ago - scalding hot food in, lukewarm at best by lunchtime.

I don’t know much about Thermos-type flasks (I don’t drink hot drinks), so I’m not sure if this is normal or if there are better flasks that will keep some more heat in the food for around 4 hours?

Any thoughts and/or recommendations welcomed.

Thank you…!

[LandieMark]

I don't think modern ones are a lot better. My drinks flask is fine - will keep coffee hot most of the day from being made up at 7.30am. If I put piping hot soup in the food flask at the same time, it is lukewarm by 12pm at best.

[OMITN]

Interesting. Thanks!

[LandieMark]

I'm pretty convinced it is down to the size of the lid. The drinks flask has a tiny lid and food flask has a massive wide one which loses huge amounts of heat.

[sherman]

Buy her this (get other parents to chip in for money)
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8999247?clickPR=pl...
Donate it to the dance hall and send her in with her curry in a microwaveable pot of curry.

[underwhelmist]

How about an insulated tiffin? This is from Amazon but I bet you'd find something similar if you visit a supermarket that caters to the Indian community.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tiffin-Box-Stainless-Cont...

[OMITN]

Cheers. Microwave definitely not happening - introducing one of those to the studio would result in death. Have you people never dealt with dance teachers?!

Will give the Stanley another go and then investigate other options - tiffin sounds great but feels rather more sophisticated than she requires..!!

[Bill]

LandieMark said:

I don't think modern ones are a lot better. My drinks flask is fine - will keep coffee hot most of the day from being made up at 7.30am. If I put piping hot soup in the food flask at the same time, it is lukewarm by 12pm at best.

That's a bit odd. Perhaps the soup solids aren't fully hot? It might help to simmer the soup for a few minutes so everything is properly piping hot.

[Bill]

FWIW I have a Thermos .5l one that works fine for soup.

[Mr Pointy]

In several past threads various posters have recommended Stanley flasks so maybe have a look at one of those:

https://www.outdoorsupply.co.uk/brand/stanley-pmi/...
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/br:stanley/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=stanley+flask&cri...

[Bumblebee7]

I bought this for £8 in Sainsbury's last year and it's great. Got hot soup in it today.

My experience is pretty much anything by the Thermos brand is brilliant at heat retention. The original and still the best.

I bought a 0.47l drink flask and no joke I make my tea the evening before work so it's drinkable by next morning. It retains temperature so well it's still scalding hours later. No comparison to any of the other brands I've tried.

[OMITN]

Mr Pointy said:

In several past threads various posters have recommended Stanley flasks so maybe have a look at one of those:

https://www.outdoorsupply.co.uk/brand/stanley-pmi/...
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/br:stanley/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=stanley+flask&cri...

It’s a Stanley.

[OMITN]

I’m wondering whether part of the challenge is the fact her food was not filled to the top - not sure I’d want to eat that much curry and do the energetic workout she does on a Thursday night..!

But if it isn’t filled to the top the heat will transfer to that air pocket and be lost on opening.

Hmm.

[LandieMark]

Bumblebee7 said:

I bought this for £8 in Sainsbury's last year and it's great. Got hot soup in it today.

My experience is pretty much anything by the Thermos brand is brilliant at heat retention. The original and still the best.

I bought a 0.47l drink flask and no joke I make my tea the evening before work so it's drinkable by next morning. It retains temperature so well it's still scalding hours later. No comparison to any of the other brands I've tried.

That's the one I've got that doesn't work.

[LandieMark]

Bill said:

LandieMark said:

I don't think modern ones are a lot better. My drinks flask is fine - will keep coffee hot most of the day from being made up at 7.30am. If I put piping hot soup in the food flask at the same time, it is lukewarm by 12pm at best.

That's a bit odd. Perhaps the soup solids aren't fully hot? It might help to simmer the soup for a few minutes so everything is properly piping hot.

Heinz Tomato Soup, so no solids.

[blueST]

Use a Jetboil to heat it on site?

[ColinM50]

I explained to my mate Paddy that a thermos keeps hot things hot and cold things cold. He put tomato soup and a choc ice in it and wasn't impressed.