‘Chez ISS’: NASA Astronaut Anil Menon Shows How Astronauts Are Slow-Cooking Fresh Onions in Space (Video)

NASA astronaut Anil Menon offered a fresh glimpse into daily life aboard the International Space Station (ISS), sharing a update on social media highlighting the crew’s latest culinary milestone in microgravity.

Posting under the caption "Chez ISS - episode deux: The one with the onions. Jack and @astro_jessica slow cooking," Menon showcased how he and fellow astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway are experimenting with fresh ingredients hundreds of miles above Earth. The social post follows a recent harvest aboard the orbital station, marking another step forward in NASA’s ongoing space agriculture research. ‘Chez ISS’: Indian-Origin NASA Astronaut Anil Menon Shares Video of Harvesting Fresh Kale, Wasabi Greens in Space (Watch).

Cooking in Microgravity

Preparing fresh meals in microgravity presents unique technical challenges due to the absence of traditional gravity, which prevents fluids from settling and heat from circulating through normal convection. In response, space crews rely on specialized heating equipment, sealed containment packs, and slow-cooking methods to prepare food safely. Adding fresh ingredients like onions, which require controlled heat to soften without dispersing vapors or liquids into the cabin, provides crew members with improved texture and flavor compared to standard rehydrated rations.

Expanding Space-Grown Produce

The culinary update comes shortly after crew members harvested fresh greens, including kale and wasabi mustard, grown using NASA’s Veggie plant growth system. The Veggie system uses specialized LED lighting and nutrient-rich soil pillows to study how plant roots and leaves adapt to weightlessness. While packaged meals continue to supply the bulk of daily caloric needs for station crews, integrating freshly harvested produce provides valuable micro-nutrients that degrade over time in preserved storage.

Paving the Way for Long-Duration Missions

NASA’s focus on cultivating and preparing fresh food extends far beyond immediate crew comfort. As space agencies plan for extended missions to the Moon under the Artemis program and eventually crewed journeys to Mars, self-sustaining food production will be critical. Resupply missions from Earth will be impractical over long distances, making on-board farming and cooking vital for crew survival. 'Welcome Home': US-Russian Crew Lands Safely in Kazakhstan Aboard Soyuz MS-28 After 241-Day ISS Mission (Watch).

Anil Menon Gives Glimpse of Slow Cooking Aboard ISS

Additionally, flight surgeons and mission psychologists emphasize that cultivating, preparing, and sharing fresh food offers important psychological benefits, offering astronauts a sensory connection to Earth during lengthy stays in orbit.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 31, 2026 05:36 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).