Miso fermented in space has a completely different taste

Forget the dried ice cream with chalk freezing or some of the plated mashed potatoes. Space pioneers on the International Space Station have now proven that delicious fermented dishes such as Japanese soybean paste known as Mysu in space can be prepared.

This may seem like a big deal for ISS residents who yearn for some best meals, but it may have great impacts on the most ambitious space tasks. One of the main issues in planning these trips, which can include future trips to Mars, is the problem of maintaining astronauts that feed for long periods of time. The ability to ferment their own ingredients can only help in nutrition-but it can also provide some joy and comfort that affects them in the form of delicious meals.

The way to penetrate this cooking began in March 2020, when an international dining team sent a package containing a mixture of soybeans, Rice Koji, and salt to the International Space Station. Once it arrives, astronauts were assigned on board an experiment to see if the mixture would be fermented, resulting from the delicious dough that we know and love.

Researchers who created the mixture Described Their reasons for picking up Missu in the magazine Iscience. The researchers wrote that Meso suffers from increased interest within the food science community due to “the diversity and uniqueness of Mico Mico.” Other reasons have been based on practical application, as the “solid structure” of the paste reduced the chances of leaks (a great concern in the ISS sensitive environment), and the timer of MISO fermentation is suitable for 30 days that were forced to manage the experiment. Missu was also perfect thanks to his strong taste and high nutritional value.

After 30 days, the fermented Misso was now returned to the ground, where its chemical and microbial composition was analyzed. MISO has also been examined for possible harmful microbes, and of course, for taste.

There were some doubts about whether the experiment would succeed. After all, the environment on ISS has some major differences from the ground. There is minor gravity, but also increased radiation levels. Both can interfere with the fermentation process.

Those fears, fortunately, were unfounded. However, despite successful fermentation, when researchers, Misso, made of space, compared the samples created on Earth, they found some differences. The proportions of different types of microbes were different, although it concluded that ISS Miso was, in fact, Meso.

“There are some features of the space environment in the low Earth’s orbit – in minor gravity and increased radiation – that can have effects on how microbes and metabolism grow, and thus how fermentation works,” said Joshua Evans, the first researcher at the University of Novo Nordsk. press release. “We wanted to explore the effects of these conditions.”

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“ISS MISO displays some clear sensory differences compared to the earth misos,” and scientists admitted the paper, boasting a higher level of “roasted” and “nuts” scents that affected the flavor.

The results are the latest example of the space of space food since John Glen became the first person to eat in space in 1962 (partially consumed a tube from Apple). In recent years, products such as lettuce have grown (And eat) On board. NASA even made the development of new food techniques In competition.

While the tasks to Mars and outside are still far from the feasibility, knowing how to keep astronauts feed without filling the entire spacecraft with snacks is still a logistical problem. This little fermented, Meso walnuts can come a long way – literally.