While preparing for his mission aboard the International Space Station, Raphaël Liégeois wanted to sneak a reminder of home into his space luggage: the boulet liégeois (Liége-style meatball).
Specifically speaking, he meant a boulet devised by Frédéric Lambert, head chef at l’Amirauté in Tilff, who recalls, “He was such a dedicated student that he would cycle all the way here.”
This soon-to-be space food, now successfully added to the list of recipes authorised by NASA, was not without its own fair share of technical challenges. “The sauce, which is the true signature of the boulet liégeois, was particularly challenging.” In zero gravity, liquid spatters must be avoided. “This gave birth to the idea of encapsulating the sauce within the centre of the meatball, which is still under consideration.”
Frédéric Lambert is also signing off on something that is “above all, the result of extensive collaboration with other Belgian and European chefs and gastronomical experts.” They all shared a common goal: to promote the Walloon region all the way to space, as well as wanting to keep one foot back on Earth, even when being pulled away from it.
WAB Magazine
