Had the same thing happen today with some buddies and raw ... not human ... steaks. Put them in the fire and they rapidly went from pristine to ruined. Five guys sitting right next to the fire. Feels like a bug, but it was also our first time. Maybe we're all just noobs :)

Here's what I do: In the Controls menu under infantry movement, bind "fast forward" to the W key. This lets you sprint without holding shift. Unbind normal forward movement from W. You can still jog with the up arrow key. Next, find a credit card, finger nail clippers, or anything small and flat to jam down the W key by fulcruming against the keys above it. DIY autorun completed. Seriously, this is the biggest missing feature.