Ikea's Food Lab to Launch a Futuristic Cookbook in 2019
If you haven’t heard of Space10 yet—Ikea’s Copenhagen-based innovation lab—allow us to paint a picture. Its test kitchen is currently working on healthy fast food alternatives that rival Noma in futuristic cuisine. Think hot dogs made from carrots, served in spirulina buns and topped with mustard and tumeric cream; for dessert, there’s microgreen ice cream. While the Space10 team has been in action since 2015, they’re taking their mission to the next level this year by releasing a cookbook—Future Food Today, as reported by Forbes. And from what we know so far, there are plenty of more inventive recipes on the way.
The book, which will be distributed by Amsterdam-based FRAME Publishing, according to the Space10 team, focuses on “delicious, sustainable and future-proof recipes that help us eat better, both for ourselves and the planet.” The full recipe list hasn't been confirmed yet, but readers can likely expect to find some of the lab's staple recipes inside. There could be variations from its “LOKAL salad bar”—involving combinations of microgreens, vegetables, herbs and sprouts, served with homemade dressings. Other meals are more experimental—Bug Burgers or aquaponically-grown fish tacos, anyone? The latter, one of Space10's newer ventures, is dubbed the “Holy Mole Fish Taco,” made with perch, salsa verde, hot sauce, mole sauce, and cilantro.
“You could say that, with this little treat [the fish taco], you’re actually eating an entire ecosystem,” Simon Perez, Space10’s chef and food designer, said in a statement.
Even Ikea’s signature Swedish meatball could make an appearance—albeit, reinvented as the “Swedish Neatball,” which can be made with either mealworms or a combination of vegetables (the mashed potatoes, gravy, and lingonberry sauce still remain). Curious? You’ll have to wait until May 1 to get your hands on the book, when it officially releases in the U.S. (or, if you’re Europe-based, April 1). The book is reportedly going to be available for pre-order in a few weeks. In the meantime, however, we’ve got plenty of cookbooks we can recommend for your reading list—check out more recent releases here.
