I’ve eaten a lot of weird things in my life. I’ve slurped llama soup in Peru, snacked on fried grasshoppers in Mexico and fondly recall a basil-flavoured gelato in Rome. These days, though, I gravitate towards the vegetarian side of the menu, having tried everything from konjac ‘calamari’ and seitan ‘steaks’ to jackfruit ‘pulled pork’ and Beyond ‘beef’ patties. Truth be told, I’m not usually a fan of these meat substitutes – but when I heard Australia had just approved its first lab-grown meat, I was eager to put it to the test.
In June, Australia officially became the third country in the world to approve cell-cultured meat. It took two years for Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) to give the green light to Sydney-based startup Vow, which has been selling its cultivated Japanese quail foie gras to high-end restaurants in Singapore for the past year. Quail might seem like an unusual choice for its market debut, but that’s exactly the point. Vow intentionally steered away from everyday meats like chicken or beef to avoid direct comparisons.
So, how does Vow make its cultured meat? In a big warehouse in Sydney’s Alexandria, animal cells are placed in a huge fermentation tank filled with a nutrient-rich liquid (designed to replicate the body of a living animal). There, the cells grow and multiply naturally. After 79 days, a ‘harvesting’ process occurs where the meat is separated from the liquid, like curds from whey, and then combined with other ingredients into delicacies like parfait and foie gras. Sounds questionable? Yes – but I couldn’t turn down the chance to be among the first in Australia to try their world-first cultured Japanese quail.
Ironically, the Vow preview dinner took place in the natural history section of the Australian Museum, with two long tables set beneath a giant whale skeleton. I felt honoured to be seated next to celebrated Sydney chef Mike McEnearney, a Vow ambassador and one of the first Aussie chefs to feature Vow's cultured creations on a menu.
We eased into the cell-cultured meat journey with a thick slice of McEnearney’s beloved sourdough, paired with two inventive butters. The first was a smoked cultured Japanese quail spread, which looked exactly like your standard round of butter and tasted like a campfire in buttery form. The second came in the form of a tallow candle, made from the leftover fat of the foie gras. The theatrics were half the fun – we were invited to dip our bread into the melting ‘candle wax’, which, surprisingly, did have a hint of that candle-like aroma on the palate.
Next, we sampled Vow’s cultured Japanese liver quail parfait. Silky and mousse-like, it lacked the graininess of typical liver, and its rich umami flavour could have easily fooled me. We also tried the signature cultured Japanese quail foie gras. For ethical reasons, I’ve never eaten foie gras, but it looked just like the real thing, and my fellow diners assured me it had the same fatty texture and subtle gamey flavour.
Turning the cultured Japanese quail parfait into a dessert was a bold move – it came sandwiched in a Hawaiian black salt macaron. I’ll admit, I tapped out of this course, and my friend’s single bite wasn’t exactly a rave review. Still, the evening will always be a core culinary memory for me.
So, is cell-cultured meat the food of the future? I’m still on the fence. On one hand, I support it if it can help reduce animal suffering, tackle food insecurity and cut greenhouse gas emissions from livestock farming. But whether cultured meat is truly more sustainable than traditional farming is still up for debate. Vow has commissioned an independent Life Cycle Analysis to measure its environmental impact, and we’re waiting to see the results.
If you’re keen for a taste of the world’s first cultured quail meat, it’s currently being served at leading restaurants across Sydney and Melbourne. Kitchen by Mike is at the forefront, offering the cultured Japanese quail spread with sourdough. Award-winning Sydney bar The Waratah serves pan-fried cultured Japanese quail foie gras with its steak tartare, while Melbourne’s acclaimed Italian restaurant Bottarga presents the cultured quail parfait as a cigar, complete with foie gras snow and a sprinkle of chives. Dare to take a bite? You can find more restaurants serving Vow's cultured quail here.