Michelin Star Spectroscopy

The culinary controversy between rare, medium rare and well done steak is about to take a turn, with the addition of a new option: lab grown.

Cultured meat – synthesized in a lab from animal cell cultures – is seen as a promising alternative for sustainable meat consumption. However, features such as flavor and texture require more research and improvement in order to appeal to the public. With this in mind, Milae Lee and her colleagues from Yonsei University, Republic of Korea developed a switchable flavor compound (SFC) – not to be confused with supercritical liquid chromatography – loaded on a hydrogel matrix, creating a new type of enhanced cultured meat (1).

The team employed a variety of spectroscopic techniques, including Raman, NMR and UV-Vis, to design and assess SFC’s chemical structure, thermal responsivity, as well as flavor stability. This led the team to introduce two sulfur compounds – 2-methyl-3-furanthiol and 3-mercapto-2-pentanone – known to contribute to the savory and umami flavors of cooked beef. 

More analytical testing followed with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, which confirmed the flavor profile of the newly designed SFC. Specifically, the researchers were able to analyze the volatile compounds released when the cultured meat was heated to cooking temperature – revealing that the SFC was released in a manner that closely mimicked the Maillard reaction, a chemical reaction responsible for the complex flavors of cooked meat.

By simulating this reaction within their lab-grown meat, the researchers were then able to achieve a flavor profile almost identical to that of traditional beef. 

“We believe that the present strategy can contribute to the production of cultured meat by bridging the gap between the organoleptic properties of cultured meat and those of slaughtered meat,” concluded the authors in their paper.