The ¥47,300 DeliSofter pot looks much like the rice cookers ubiquitous in Japanese households and it does prepare rice in 24 minutes. But this invention by two Panasonic Corp. engineers is designed to do more and help people with swallowing difficulties.
The two women led the creation of a spin-off company, Gifmo Co., to sell the specialized steam cooker, which they say can turn fried chicken soft enough to be sliced with a potato chip.
The machine works by first cutting into food with a series of blades and then subjecting it to extremely high pressure at a temperature of 120 degrees Celsius, rendering many familiar foods digestible without sacrificing the original shape or texture, Gifmo said. It promises to restore a sense of normalcy to elderly people’s lives and diets, allowing them to mash food with their tongue alone.