Food-Generating Microwave Wins Electrolux Design Challenge

Cocoon with Salmon Electrolux

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How will people make dinner in 90 years? If the newly crowned winner of the Electrolux Design Lab 2009 challenge is any indication, it'll be as easy as 1-2-3. Cocoon is a fish- and meat-generating microwave, intended as a solution to preserve fishing and farming resources.

You can probably already tell that this isn't your mother's microwave. The Cocoon, designed by Rickard Hederstierna of Sweden, generates meat and fish dishes with the same ease that your own 'wave pops corn. RFID technology culls cooking directions from muscle cells in small food pouches (like the salmon in the rendering above) to automatically set cooking time and temperature.

Hederstierna received a 5,000 Euro (about $7,300) prize and a six-month internship in the Electrolux Design Lab.

The People's Choice Award went to the Teleport Fridge, which beams fresh groceries into your kitchen at the touch of a button. The first-runner up was Penghao Shan's water catcher, which collects and filters rain water for drinking. And third prize went to the Renew smart steamer by Louis Filosa.