Quorn

The glass door is squeezed between two restaurants. The building number is big and bold over it, while two professional-looking women chat outside it.

We missed our destination on our first walk down the street. I hope this is it.

One of the women turns to smile at me, a little uncertain. “Hi, are you here for an event?” I nod. “Quorn?”

She lets us inside the building and leads us to the stairs. “So, where are you from?”

What does she mean, where I was born? “Where I’m from…?” I echo quietly.

“What blog?”

Oh! Right! Okay, so I got the mysterious invite to this promotional launch because of my blog. Now it makes sense.

Up the stairs and onto a balcony, where a clutch of people are gathered around a drinks table. A musician sits playing a Spanish guitar. A long white table, decorated with tea lights. And trays bearing little portions of food carried around by smiling publicists.

The research I did before explained that Quorn is a soy-free meat substitute beloved in the UK and craved by the ex-pats in Sydney. I would love to find a replacement for chicken breast: here’s hoping.

We quickly find ourselves holding drinks while a serve of the food we missed through getting lost is found.

And now the first Quorn dish is here! Dippers, aka chicken nuggets! Been many, many a year since I had nuggets. The two golden-fried portions come with beetroot relish on the side.

Scoop up some relish with the nugget, aaaand… wow! It really does taste just like a chicken nugget! I mean, chicken nuggets are generally pretty processed and that’s the taste these are mimicking so it’s not like manna from heaven but still… impressive! Beyond the taste, the texture is so similar too. Looking closely I can see that the Quorn has the same threadiness of real chicken, the layered effect of chicken nuggets rather than one solid lump. As for the batter around the nuggets, that’s all fine too.

A good start!

Hanging shyly at the side, watching the other bloggers chat… I should go introduce myself… it’s a bit scary meeting new people… but The Husband gently encourages me so off I go…

And despite being foodies, nobody bites. Friendly folk all! It seems out of the food bloggers here that I’m the only vegetarian (perhaps it is a little contradictory) but the others are very impressed by the imitation and say they wouldn’t guess it wasn’t meat if they weren’t told.

The next round of food… little rolls split down the top with a Quorn sausage, lettuce, and balsemic onions. They look so cute… whoops, some of my onions just slid off the top and onto the floor, oops… but what’s the taste like?

Hmm… the sausage tastes quite similar to other faux sausages I’ve had: more like hot dog than traditional sausage, or more like pork than beef. A soft, subtle flavour. It’s fine, The Husband really likes it, but I’ve had nicer gourmet faux sausages. Though again the texture is superior, not heavy or leaden like breadcrumb-and-vegetable based sausage. I think it would be a good sausage to use in a casserole or something. It does taste yummy with the balsamic onions though…

Time to gather around for the product presentation. Apparently Quorn is the brand name for mycoprotein, a fungus which has heaps of the nutrients found in meat that vegetarians sometimes miss out on. High in protein, low in fat, there you go. And 9% of people in the UK are vegetarian, compared to 3% in Australia! Maybe I should move…

Next course! Little skewers of Quorn pieces in tikka sauce. Bright turmeric yellow with a garnish of lime wedge. Chatting to new friends, watching the other bloggers take photos, trying the tikka…

Yum! This is my favourite so far! The texture is just like good chicken breast! Not like the dippers, which were more spongy, these are firm. I feel exactly like I’m eating diced chicken!

Quorn has accomplished what no soy has! It makes a good chicken substitute!

Relishing every cube. The sauce is a bit too strong but the Quorn is doing well. I could put this in a stir-fry, that would be the first thing I’d do…

Ah, more food again! Little clay dishes of sausage Spanish-tapas style in tomato and baby olives. The sausage is in slices now… and yes, I like this much better. I think the sausage does make a good ingredient rather than the star. It’s a team player! It doesn’t get soggy or anything, and goes nicely with the salt of the olives and the natural sweetness of cooked tomato.

Another dish… starting to get full! A bowl of tiny potato gnocchi with a parmesan and basil garnish, sitting on a bed of bolognaise sauce with Quorn mince. Try a gnocchi… yum, a little chewy gem of potato! Try some of the mince… hmm. Not heaps impressed. I think I like textured vegetable protein mince better. This seems a bit too chewy.

Other bloggers pronounce it their favourite, which surprises me. Perhaps I’ve forgotten what mince is supposed to really be like. This does lean more towards the beef end of the spectrum, while TVP is more similar to pork.

Eat a bit more… get the cheese melted in… ha, once the cheese is involved it’s great! Perhaps the mince would do better in a creamy sauce rather than a tomato one.

One of the publicists tells me about how they grow the mycoprotein in long strands, freezing it to get the right texture… it sounds so sci-fi!

And now for the last dish (thank goodness, I’m getting full!): the mince done Moroccan, with pinenuts, yoghurt, mint and sesame seeds and crispbread for scooping.

Dropped my crispbread on the ground. Why is so much of my food ending up on the floor? I need to increase my skills of holding food, eating food, and holding a drink all with two hands.

Mmm, I like this more than the other mince dish. The yoghurt gives the whole dish a zing and the mince benefits! Like I thought, the creamier sauce is a plus. And the benefit of doing this dish with Quorn over real mince is that there is no oily aftertaste, I hate having grease left on my tongue and there’s been none of that at all.

Phew! Six dishes, and I can see from the packaging display there are other products we didn’t even get to try! There are beef-like strips for cooking as well as pre-made pasties, sausage rolls, lasagne, cottage pie, southern-style burgers and – this I really want to try – cheese and spinach schnitzels. Schnitzel! I could have schnitzel again! I do miss my crumbed chicken…

Out comes a platter of fruit to end and we all joke about if it’s made of Quorn too. Well, there’s a limit to the magic but I’m impressed. If I were a meateater I’m not sure I’d be bothered to buy Quorn unless I were cooking for a vegetarian or wanted to reduce my fat intake, but for a vegetarian Quorn would be great! I really am keen to try a chicken-like stir-fry…

We say our farewells and leave with promotional packs (Quorn apron anyone?) and head off to Central Station with happy stomachs.

Rating:

Specifics: Quorn, not available in stores yet but soon in the freezer aisles of Coles and Woolworths

Disclaimer: I was Quorn’s guest at this promotional dinner.