Which snack was the first food eaten in space by an American astronaut?

Applesauce was the first food eaten in space by an American astronaut.

John Glenn ate applesauce from a squeeze tube during Friendship 7, the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission, on February 20, 1962. The food was packaged in a form that could be consumed in microgravity without loose crumbs or floating pieces. Glenn also consumed a glucose solution during the mission.

Early space food was designed primarily for practicality and safety rather than taste. Tubes and bite-sized cubes helped prevent food from drifting into instruments or astronauts’ airways. As spacecraft and food technology improved, astronauts gained access to a wider variety of dehydrated, thermostabilized, and packaged meals.