Scientists conduct ‘space miso' experiment, find ‘nuttier' taste
American and Danish astronauts conducted the iScience experiment in 2020, and scientists said the flavor was nuttier and more roasted than miso made on Earth.
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But the experiment was about more than just miso soup. Scientists wanted to see if it would be possible to ferment foods in space — and what influences the environment would have on the microbiome.
Researchers who participated in the study were sent a package that contained the miso paste ingredients — cooked soybeans, rice koji and salt — to the ISS. They allowed those ingredients to ferment for 30 days.
Researchers back on Earth also started miso batches in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Copenhagen, Denmark. Then, they monitored the environmental conditions of all three setups. After the month was over, the miso in space was sent back and compared to the batches on Earth.
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In a press release, co-lead author Joshua D. Evans of the Technical University of Denmark said, 'There are some features of the space environment in low Earth orbit — in particular, microgravity and increased radiation — that could have impacts on how microbes grow and metabolize and thus how fermentation works. We wanted to explore the effects of these conditions.'
Despite finding microbial composition of each miso soup, the team found that 'overall, the space miso is a miso,' but the findings 'suggest a specific fermentation environment in space.'
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