ESA experiments with a space fryer

To study how the space environment influences cooking techniques such as frying, ESA has designed a novel experimental apparatus that is safe and works in weightless conditions.

Frying potatoes involves complex physics and chemistry, and in space everything gets more complicated. It wasn't sure that frying would work without gravity. Without the buoyancy pulling up, the bubbles could stick to the surface of the potatoes, protecting it with a layer of steam that the researchers thought could leave it undercooked and undesirable.

The experiments were carried out in two ESA parabolic flight campaigns, in which an aircraft flies in repeated arcs to recreate brief moments of weightlessness, the agency reports in a statement.

The experiment filmed the frying process with a high-speed, high-resolution camera to capture bubble dynamics such as growth rate, size, and distribution, as well as escape velocity from the potato, velocity of bubbles and the direction of movement in the oil. The experiment measured the temperature of the boiling oil as well as the temperatures inside the potato.

The experiment hardware is automated and locked for security. It maintains a constant pressure inside the frying chamber to prevent leaks, prevent oil from spattering and spend less energy on heating.

Researchers at the University of Thessaloniki, Greece, found that shortly after adding the potato to the oil under low-gravity conditions, the steam bubbles easily dislodged from the surface of the potato in a similar way to Earth.. While more research is needed to fine-tune some parameters, it does indicate that astronauts will be able to have more than rehydrated food on the menu as they explore new worlds.