Media release

From: Springer Nature

Improving the flavour of cultured meat 

A flavour-switchable scaffold that can release meaty flavour compounds at cooking temperatures may improve the taste of lab-grown meat, according to a Nature Communications paper. The findings could help to culture meat that better mimics the taste of conventional meat, such as cooked beef, the authors suggest.

Cultured meat is emerging as a new food type that can provide animal protein in a sustainable way. Previous research has used various types of scaffolds and 3D materials to develop cultivated meat with similar shape and structural properties to those of traditional products, including steak and meatballs. However, flavour is often overlooked in meat cultivation strategies.

Jinkee Hong and colleagues designed a temperature-responsive scaffold where a switchable flavour compound is incorporated into a gelatin-based hydrogel. The scaffold remained stable during the cell culture period but released meaty flavour compounds when cooking temperature was reached (above 150 °C), thereby replicating key chemical reactions of cooking conventional meat. According to chemical analyses, including the use of an e-nose (electric nose), the meat exhibited a flavour pattern similar to that of grilled beef.

The findings suggest a potential method to enhance the aromatic properties of cultured meat and mimic the natural cooking flavours of beef.