Just out of high school I worked at a Sears automotive center and was helping the mechanic doing an engine swap on a Ford pickup. I asked the owner about a wire basket that was strapped to the exhaust crossover pipe and he said he used it to heat his canned food. He said you have to keep track of how hard the engine is working because going up a long grade generates a lot of heat in the pipe.
He said he misjudged how hot things were there one time and 2 or 3 cans exploded. He said that cleaning up the mess was bad enough, but the burnt food smell lasted for days.