To celebrate World Meat Free Week, which is currently taking place now and ends on the 17th of June, Quorn™ Singapore is collaborating with the well-loved brand, BarCook Bakery to launch a Meat Free series of six buns made with popular Quorn™ products. 

Established in the United Kingdom in 1985, Quorn™ is committed to making tasty food that is not only nutritious but also sustainable for the environment. The company is the preferred choice for those who are mindful of what goes into their food. In essence, consumers who choose Quorn™, select food that is good for themselves and the environment, embracing taste, nutrition, convenience and thus, a happier life.

As well, Quorn™ products also boast great taste and texture, making it an ideal ingredient for a broad range of cuisines, cooking styles and palettes. 

A global initiative that was built on the popularity of World Meat Free Day in 2015, this enjoyed global success in 2017, with a reach of 200 million people globally through the support from Quorn™, GreenPeace Worldwide and personalities like Chris Darwin – the conservationist and great-grandson of Charles Darwin, British comedian John Bishop and actress Joanna Lumley.

World Meat Free Week is a registered charity in the United Kingdom that aims to encourage people globally to reduce their meat consumption. It does not ask for or receive monetary donations; its aim is to simply raise awareness, educate and inform change – to put a spotlight on reducing meat intake for the sake of the planet by encouraging people to make at least one meal meat-free.

Currently meat production is responsible for 14.5 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than all emissions from global transport combined. And with the global population estimated to reach 9.1 billion by 2050, the larger public will require an extra 200 million tonnes of meat annually.

Furthermore the livestock sector uses 30 per cent of the Earth’s entire land surface and 69 per cent of global fresh water is attributed to food system usage, and 80 per cent of the deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest is attributed to beef production. So it is widely accepted that to increase meat production to meet the rising demand is neither sustainable nor ethically feasible. 

So making a simple swap to make one meal meat-free during World Meat Free Week, can have a huge impact to further behavioural change for the sake of a healthier planet. 

And by doing so, we can save greenhouse gases emissions equivalent to enough electricity to charge a mobile phone for two years, and reduce our carbon footprint by up to 50 per cent at the same time.

Globally, this collective effort would save the carbo equivalent of boiling a kettle more than one trillion times, and over 665 billion calories equivalent to running more than 263 million marathons.

But Quorn™ recognises that consumers in Singapore may be faced with limited meat free options, thus the introduction of the six Meat-Free buns, by the company. 

The buns are as follows.

• Meat Free Basil Instinct (S$2.20) – This is a medley of dried basil, pesto, melted cheddar and Quorn™ mince, giving it a savoury kick.
• Meat Free Pasta La Vista (S$2.20) – This is a Pain Brie style bun that is made with the popular Quorn™ Swedish Style Balls that are slathered with the classic pasta sauce and melted cheddar and sprinkled with breadcrumbs.
• Meat Free Banger Bun (S$2.20) – This is crusty on the outside and chewy on the inside. It is made with Quorn™ Sausages, wholegrain mustard and a dash of roasted sesame powder.
• Meat Free Cheezus Loves You (S$2.20) – This consists of Quorn™ Southern Fried Bites, together with cheddar and nacho sauce.
• Meat Free Curry My Favour (S$1.90) – This consists of Quorn™ Mince, curry spices and cheddar
• Meat Free Umami Potato (S$2.20) – This contains Quorn™ Mince, Sesame Soya Sauce, sea salt and cheddar and then topped with a chunk of potato.

Quorn™ recently sent me a media drop that had consisted of all six of these buns.

Meat-Free Banger Bun.

Out of the six, the one that had left the biggest impression on me had been the Meat-Free Banger Bun. This is because I generally love my sausages so eating this bun had really reminded me of the sausage buns that I enjoy buying from most of the bakery shops across Singapore. In fact, if I had not been told that this is a meat-free bun, I could have sworn that I was eating a real sausage bun.

Besides the meat-free sausage though, I could also taste a slight hint of mustard in this bun. I must admit that I usually am not a fan of mustard in my hotdogs because it generally tends to be quite overwhelming. But in this case though, I felt that the mustard flavour had been subtle enough to complement the sausage, without being overwhelming.

Overall this bun had been quite yummy and I really enjoyed it. So I can definitely see myself buying this for my breakfast.

Meat-Free Pasta La Vista.

I also enjoyed the Meat-Free Pasta La Vista. With the usage of the Quorn™ Swedish Style balls, together with some tomato flavour and a rather slight hint of cheese, this had reminded me of a bread version of the Italian spaghetti meatballs on tomato sauce dish, that I generally enjoy eating.

As well, the Quorn™ Swedish Style balls in this particular bun had seemed to be pretty meaty. It was hard to believe that no meat was used in the preparation of the bun. Overall, I had thought that the flavours complemented each other quite well in this bun.

Meat-Free Cheezus Loves You

I thought that the Meat-Free Cheezus Loves You bun was also quite delicious, basically because I love cheese. In this bun, the cheese flavours are definitely apparent and there is certainly a generous amount of it present inside the bun.

Besides the cheese flavour, there is also a hint of a meaty note coming from the Quorn™ Southern Fried Bites, which had reminded me of fried chicken. I had thought that this went together quite well with the cheese flavour, and the contrast of flavours had been quite good. I admit that this too, is a bun that I would not mind getting again for my breakfast.

Meat-Free Basil Instinct

However I must say that the Meat-Free Basil Instinct had a rather strong herbal flavour, which had come from the basil herbs that had been used in the making of this bun. This was immediately apparent when I bit into this bun for the first time.

At the same time too, I could detect a cheesy note, thanks to the melted cheddar cheese that had been present inside this bun. I thought that this seemed to have balanced out the taste of the basil to prevent it from being completely overwhelming.

Meat-Free Curry My Favor

Those who enjoy their curry and laksa will enjoy eating the Meat-Free Curry My Favour bun as the subtle hint of curry flavour gives this bun a nice, local infusion. 

But for a curry bun though, I felt that the curry flavour had been a bit mild and as a result, this bun did not really have enough ‘kick’ to it.

However, I could also taste a very slight hint of a cheddar flavour in this bun when I took a second mouthful.

The cheese taste was not really overwhelming either, but if the curry flavour had been stronger, then I think that this bun may have been better.

Meat-Free Umami Potato

And as for the Meat-Free Umami Potato bun, I could immediately pick up the taste from the rather large potato chunks the moment that I had bit into it. I had though the amount of potato that was used in this bun had been quite generous.

There is also a slight hint of a meaty flavour coming from the Quorn™ Meat Free Mince that had been baked inside this bun too. While I found that the potato taste had generally overwhelmed the Quorn™ Meat-Free Mince present in this bun, this is nevertheless a bun that would appeal to those who love their potatoes.

All of these buns will be made available at the bakery’s repertoire on a regular basis and at all outlets islandwide in locations such as Raffles City, NEX, Tampines One and Alexandra Retail Centre, amongst others.

As well, to spread the word of the introduction of these buns, Quorn™ is featuring two of the six buns daily; thereafter, all of the six buns will be available on a daily basis.

As part of the launch promotion too, Quorn™ is giving away 100 buns at 3pm every day from now till the 17th June, at six BarCook Bakery outlets at Hong Lim Complex, OG Alexandra Complex, Alexandra Retail Centre, NEX, Clarke Quay Central and Raffles City Shopping Center, while stocks last.

Also, across all 11 of the BarCook Bakery outlets in Singapore, consumers can also enjoy a promotional rate of S$1 per bun from 12pm to 2pm daily, now till 17th June. 

But do note though, that this promotion is only valid for the first 200 buns daily and each customer is limited to two buns per person.

For more information and details, head to the Quorn™ website at www.quorn.sg.