Portable cooking apparatus

1 . An apparatus, comprising:

a cooktop disposed on a top, upward-facing surface of the apparatus;

one or more foldable leaves; and

a cooking apparatus engagement point, wherein:

the cooking apparatus engagement point is disposed on a bottom surface of the apparatus opposite the top, upward-facing surface of the apparatus;

the bottom surface of the apparatus is configured to rest on top of an uppermost, upward-facing surface of a tailgate of a vehicle when the tailgate is in an open position; and

the cooking apparatus engagement point is configured to mate with a vehicle engagement point projecting upward from the uppermost, upward-facing surface of the tailgate such that the apparatus is secured to the tailgate when the tailgate is in the open position.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the cooktop is an induction cooktop.

3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:

the apparatus further includes a center section comprising the cooktop;

the one or more foldable leaves are configured to fold for stowing the apparatus in a storage compartment of the vehicle;

the one or more foldable leaves include:

a first leaf foldable at a first side of the center section; and

a second leaf foldable at a second side of the center section;

the first leaf comprises a first leaf top aspect opposite a first leaf bottom aspect;

the second leaf comprises a second leaf top aspect opposite a second leaf bottom aspect; and

the center section comprises a center section top aspect opposite a center section bottom aspect; and

folding the first leaf and the second leaf transitions the apparatus between an open configuration and a closed configuration.

4 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the second leaf top aspect and the center section top aspect are coplanar in the open configuration.

5 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the first leaf is foldable at a first longitudinal side of the center section and the second leaf is foldable at a second longitudinal side of the center section, and the apparatus further comprises a storage unit extending laterally from the center section at a first lateral side extending between the first longitudinal side and the second longitudinal side.

6 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the first leaf top aspect and the second leaf top aspect each face the center section top aspect in the closed configuration, and wherein, in the closed configuration, a first height is measured from the center section bottom aspect to the first leaf bottom aspect, and wherein the storage unit has a second height as measured from a storage unit bottom aspect to a storage unit top aspect, the first height is substantially the same as the second height.

7 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein;

the center section comprises a first subsection and a second subsection;

the first subsection comprises the cooktop disposed at the center section top aspect; and

the second subsection comprises a drawer accessible at a center section front aspect corresponding to a lateral side of the center section.

8 . The apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising a strap, wherein:

the strap is coupled to the center section at a first location proximate a first longitudinal side of the center section; and

the strap is coupled to the center section at a second location proximate a second longitudinal side of the center section.

9 . A system comprising:

a vehicle, comprising:

a storage compartment having a storage compartment profile; and

a vehicle engagement point projecting upward from an uppermost, upward-facing surface of a tailgate of the vehicle when the tailgate is in an open position; and

a cooking apparatus, comprising:

a cooktop disposed on a top, upward-facing surface of the apparatus;

one or more foldable leaves; and

a cooking apparatus engagement point, wherein:

the cooking apparatus engagement point is disposed on a bottom surface of the cooking apparatus opposite the top, upward-facing surface of the cooking apparatus;

the bottom surface of the cooking apparatus is configured to rest on top of the uppermost, upward-facing surface of the tailgate of the vehicle when the tailgate is in the open position; and

the cooking apparatus engagement point is configured to mate with the vehicle engagement point such that the cooking apparatus is secured to the tailgate.

10 . The system of claim 9 , wherein:

the cooking apparatus further includes a center section comprising the cooktop;

the center section comprises a first longitudinal side opposite a second longitudinal side and a first lateral side opposite a second lateral side;

the one or more foldable leaves are configured to fold for stowing the cooking apparatus in a storage compartment of the vehicle; and

the one or more foldable leaves include:

a first leaf foldable with the first longitudinal side of the center section; and

a second leaf foldable with the second longitudinal side of the center section.

11 . A cooking apparatus, comprising:

a cooktop disposed on a first surface of the apparatus;

a center section;

a first leaf foldable at a first side of the center section; and

one or more cooking apparatus engagement points disposed on a second surface of the apparatus opposite the first surface of the apparatus, wherein the one or more cooking apparatus engagement points are configured to mate with one or more vehicle engagement points that extend upward and away from a surface of a tailgate on which the apparatus is configured to rest.

12 . The cooking apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising a second leaf foldable at a second side of the center section, wherein:

the first leaf and the second leaf each include the first surface and the second surface;

a first cooking apparatus engagement point of the one or more cooking apparatus engagement points is disposed on the second surface of the first leaf and is configured to mate with a first vehicle engagement point of the one or more vehicle engagement points; and

a second cooking apparatus engagement point of the one or more cooking apparatus engagement points is disposed on the second surface of the second leaf and is configured to mate with a second vehicle engagement point of the one or more vehicle engagement points.

13 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the second leaf comprises a removable cutting board on a top aspect of the second leaf.

14 . The system of claim 10 , wherein:

folding the first leaf and the second leaf transitions the cooking apparatus between an open configuration and a closed configuration;

the first leaf comprises a first leaf top aspect opposite a first leaf bottom aspect;

the second leaf comprises a second leaf top aspect opposite a second leaf bottom aspect; and

the center section comprises a center section top aspect opposite a center section bottom aspect; and

the first leaf top aspect and the second leaf top aspect each face the center section top aspect in the closed configuration.

15 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the first leaf top aspect, the second leaf top aspect, and the center section top aspect are coplanar in the open configuration.

16 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the cooking apparatus further comprises a storage unit extending laterally from the center section at the first lateral side.

17 . The system of claim 16 , wherein, in the closed configuration, a first height, measured from the center section bottom aspect to the first leaf bottom aspect, is substantially the same as a second height measured from a storage unit bottom aspect to a storage unit top aspect.

18 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the center section comprises a first subsection and a second subsection, the first subsection comprising the cooktop disposed at a center section top aspect, and the second subsection comprising a drawer accessible at a center section front aspect corresponding to the second lateral side of the center section.

19 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the cooking apparatus further comprises a strap, the strap coupled to the center section at a first location proximate the first longitudinal side, and the strap coupled to the center section at a second location proximate the second longitudinal side.