Smokeless 'Hoang Cam' kitchen was a small yet extremely significant initiative of a soldier chef named Hoang Cam in the Hoa Binh campaign in 1951 – 1952. This legendary stove, later named after him, accompanied the nation in the 1954 Dien Bien Phu Campaign, and during the resistance war against the US.



"Hoang Cam” stove ensures hot meals for soldiers in training, combat readiness.

General Vo Nguyen Giap said that when mentioning the Hoa Binh campaign, it would be a mistake not to mention the initiative that brought about very important improvements for the meals of soldiers.

During the Hoa Binh campaign, Hoang Cam, a soldier chef at Infantry Division 308, invented astove intake and chimney system which diffused and dissipated smoke from cooking, thus preventing aerial detection of smoke by military planes. The smoke from the stove rising through the chimney system is only a thin strip that quickly dissipates as it leaves the ground.

The "Hoang Cam” stove quickly became popular among units, especially in Dien Bien Phu Campaign.

The invention helped chefs cook during the day even when enemy reconnaissance planes flew overhead. The stove was effective in all subsequent campaigns, even in the resistance against the US.

Many veterans said that without the Hoang Cam stove, cooking meals to ensure the health of soldiers would still be very difficult.

With this initiative, soldiers were able to take hot meals and hot water in winter, and field military medical stations had hot water to sterilise medical instruments. This initiative held significant value in practical military operations and combat, contributing to maintaining the health and the number of soldiers in long campaigns.

The use of the "Hoang Cam" stove in combat was proven effective during the Dien Bien Phu Campaign, ensuring secrecy and surprise, and avoiding detection by enemy aircraft, thereby minimising casualties for the military.

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