Pizza for three years soldiers still eat well

Scientists say it has almost completed a pizza recipe that does not need to be removed from a refrigerator or an ice chest that can be eaten for years.

American soldiers have requested more pizza for personal meals on the battlefield since 1981. Scientists call it a handy meal for soldiers - a pizza that can be stored on shelves for three years and still delicious .

Researchers, from left to right, Mary Scerra, Priscilla Bitopoulos and Lauren Pecukonis, prepare ingredients for prototype pizza.(Photo: TL)

Soldiers are offered personal snack pizza on the battlefield - called instant meals (MRE) - replacing 1981 canned food for soldiers in battle zones or areas where kitchens The battle cannot be built.

Researchers at the US military lab in Massachusetts are ending a recipe that does not require refrigeration or freezing. The finished product is still developing, but cake testers think it tastes like a typical pizza.

'You can basically get packaged bread, leave it on the shelf for three years still edible,' AP quoted Michelle Richardson, a food scientist at the Natick center of the US military. rescue, development and manufacturing.

This pizza can be left on the shelf for three years and still edible.(Photo: TL)

Natick lab scientists are also responsible for developing clothing and equipment to improve combat effectiveness for soldiers and their survival, but the requirement for a delicious pizza is considered as is the 'holy bread' there. Pizza is one of the most requested items when everyone thinks it's the one they need most, Richardson said. She spent nearly two years developing the formula.

Scientists' efforts for a long time have been hindered because the moisture in the tomato sauce, cheese and the kernel over time spread to the moist cake flour, creating perfect conditions for mold and bacteria. causing disease to develop.

But intermittent research over the years has helped scientists figure out ways to prevent moisture from spreading. This includes the use of moisturizers - sugar, salt and syrup - to retain water and prevent it from spreading into the dough.

But that's all it takes to keep pizza fresh for three years in a temperature of over 26 degrees Celsius, so scientists adjust the acidity of sauces, cheese and flour to make oxygen and bacteria difficult to reproduce. . They also added iron stuffing in the cake package to suck in any air in it.

What is the taste?

No soldiers have been tried out because the cake is in development, but Jill Bates, who runs the lab, said she found it very well after tasting the latest prototype cake with pepper sauce. She described it as a cake made of pans, with a slightly moist and not crunchy crust.

'It's almost like a standard pizzas that you can make at home and get out of the oven,' she said. 'The only thing missing is that you can't eat hot cakes'.