The Umami Reader: Kewpie Mayo Dependency is Real

- Writer Kevin Pang examines his Kewpie mayo dependency with an excellent piece on the addictive Japanese condiment. The article explores Kewpie's history, breaks down its ingredients and why it tastes so good on everything and anything, and has news of an U.S.-produced version coming soon (which, predictably, will not contain MSG). (A.V. Club; via John Lombardo; photo of okonomiyaki by Kayoko Akabori)

- You may never go to outer space, but now you can eat like an astronaut. Moscow-based company Space Food claims that their cuisine-in-a-tube is legit space eats, made by FGUP “BEZ,” the manufacturer and supplier of nourishment for cosmonauts at the International Space Station. You can buy individual tubes or a six-pack for a full-course meal. Flavors include Borscht, Rassolnik (Russian cucumber soup), Pork with Vegetables, Meat Puree, Cottage Cheese with Sea Buckthorn Puree, and Cottage Cheese with Black Current Puree. Yum? (Pee-wee Herman)

- A follow-up to their popular illustrated book Pen & Ink about tattoos and the stories behind them, co-authors Isaac Fitzgerald and Wendy MacNaughton's Knives and Ink delves into the culinary world, focusing on chef tattoos. The book – which will be released on October 18 – features 65 chefs, including James Beard-award winner Jamie Bissonnette, Mission Chinese Food's Danny Bowien, and Atelier Crenn's Dominique Crenn. (Via Wendy MacNaughton)



- What does a 17-pound Argentine Red Tegu lizard named MacGyver eat? Grapes, crab, boiled eggs, cherries, shrimp, papaya, and everything else its eccentric owner (who is named Ice) feeds him – with chopsticks, to boot. (AJ+)