feast on roast chicken

For the first time in the history of space exploration, six astronauts they have had a feast with space-roasted chicken and beef. The scene took place aboard the Chinese space station Tiangong, where the crews of the Shenzhou-20 and Shenzhou-21 missions celebrated their reunion by cooking chicken wings and steaks in an oven specially designed to operate in microgravity.

An orbital culinary milestone. He video released by the Chinese National Space Agency (CNSA) shows flight commander Chen Dong grilling half a dozen wings in a small oven built into the station wall. The pieces of meat are placed on a cage-type rack to prevent them from floating, and the device, which is more like a dryer than a conventional kitchen appliance, cooks them for 28 minutes until they get a nice golden brown. After the wings, the crew also prepared hydrated beef steaks.

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A more important comfort than it seems. Kang Guohua, professor of aerospace engineering at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, explained Chinese state media that these types of amenities are essential to keep crews psychologically “connected” during their long stays in orbit. The furnace arrived at Tiangong with the Shenzhou-21 mission, which reached the station on October 31, breaking the national speed record in docking maneuvers.

Technology to stay. Unlike the Zero G prototype which NASA tested in 2019 to bake cookies on the International Space Station, a temporary experiment, this Chinese oven is permanently integrated into Tiangong’s systems.

According to the China Astronaut Center, the device works without overloading the electrical network of the station, provides consistent, smoke-free baking conditions in microgravity, and is certified for up to 500 uses. This is a crucial feature, as space stations rely on tightly controlled life support systems and rigorous fire safety protocols.

A full belly, a happy heart. The images went viral on social networks, with users joking and highlighting the difference between the food of Chinese space missions and the rest. The crew of Shenzhou-21 will stay in Tiangong for six months conducting experiments including, according to payload specialist Zhang Hongzhang, Chinese gardening, zero-gravity tai-chi, and space poetry.

Meanwhile, the Shenzhou-20 crew, which had been on the station since April, was scheduled to return to Earth on November 5, although his return was postponed due to a possible collision with small space debris that required additional safety checks.

Cover image | CNSA

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