NASA Astronaut Makes "Ranger Burger" In Space: "Miss Cooking For My Family, But..."

A NASA astronaut recently shared what a cheeseburger in space looks like. Taking to X, Jonny Kim, a NASA astronaut on board the International Space Station (ISS), shared a series of pictures of his "ranger burger" creation floating in zero-gravity. The burger, like any fast food treat, consisted of "beef steak, wheat snack bread, cheese spread as both topping and glue, potatoes au gratin layered in the middle, and a generous slather of gochujang red pepper paste from a care package on the SpX-32 Cargo Dragon."

"M+16: If you've lived on MREs, you've probably tried some creative field recipes," the astronaut, who has been on board the ISS since April 8, wrote in his post. "I miss cooking for my family. But this hits the spot in its own way," Mr Kim added. 

Take a look below: 

M+16: If you've lived on MREs, you've probably tried some creative field recipes.

Here is a twist on the ranger burger, one of my favorites: beef steak, wheat snack bread, cheese spread as both topping and glue, potatoes au gratin layered in the middle, and a generous slather… pic.twitter.com/6Yv9PiVVRc

— Jonny Kim (@JonnyKimUSA) April 30, 2025

Since being shared, the post has accumulated nearly 30,000 likes. Reacting to Mr Kim's snack, one user wrote, "Thank you for sharing this tasty looking sandwich and views from your adventures in space thus far! Lots of respect and admiration and gratitude for your service." 

"Im outer space while inventing new lunchables! Keep up the good work!" commented another. 

Jonny Kim is aboard the International Space Station. According to Space.com, he took the photos of his floating food inside the Unity module, which links the US operating segment of the station to the Russian segment. It has a table where the astronauts and cosmonauts living on the outpost like to come together for group meals.

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Mr Kim's burger creation is special because astronauts in space are not only forced to get creative with what they have access to, but they have to make sure they're consuming enough calories while in outer space. Moreover, in microgravity, foods tend to taste bland because of fluid shifts in our body and smells no longer waft up into our nose. To correct for this, astronauts tend to prefer spicy foods or adding spicy sauces, like sriracha, tabasco or red pepper paste.

Notably, when two NASA astronauts were stranded on the ISS for five months, they chowed down on pizza, roast chicken and shrimp cocktail. Unfortunately, processed food is what many in their position have to eat because the Space Food Systems Laboratory at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston has limited fresh fruit and veggies.

All meat products - like the beef steak used in Mr Kim's burger - and eggs are originally cooked on Earth and are then reheated in space for consumption.