Variation in Flavor and Textural Descriptions of Cooked Steaks from Bovine m. longissimus thoracis et lumborum from Different Production and Aging Regimes

Flavor, Tenderness, and Related Chemical Changes of Aged Beef Strip Loins

Varying aging times and methods were evaluated for their effect on flavor, tenderness, and related changes involatile compounds and flavor precursors. Strip loin sections from USDA Choice beef carcasses (n = 38) were randomly assigned to treatments: (1) 3 d wet-aged, (2) 14 d wet-aged, (3) 28 d wet-aged, (4) 35 d wet-aged, (5) 49 d wet-aged, (6) 63 d wet-aged, (7) 21 d dry-aged, and (8) 14 d wet-aged followed by 21 d dry-aged. Samples were analyzed for trained sensory attributes, shear force, volatile compounds, and flavor precursors (fatty acids, free amino acids, and sugars). Discriminant function analysis was used to identify sensory attributes contributing the greatest to treatment differences. Flavor notes were not differentiated in beef aged up to 35 d, regardless of aging method. A shift in flavor occurred between 35 d and 49 d of wet-aging time that was characterized by more intense sour and musty/earthy notes. Both shear force assessment and trained panelists agreed that tenderness was not affected (P > 0.05) by additional aging beyond 28 d. Volatile compound production and liberation of amino acids and sugars increased (P < 0.01) during the progression of aging time, with no change (P > 0.05) in fatty acid composition, which may be a result of metabolic processes like microbial metabolism. Chemical properties shared strong positive relationships (r > 0.50, P < 0.001) with sour, musty/earthy, and overall tenderness. These results substantiate the deteriorative effect of extended aging times of 49 d or greater on flavor of beef strip loins without tenderness improvement.

Influence of ageing on longissimus lumborum quality from Holstein-Friesian young bulls fed different diets

The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of ageing (9 and 14 days) on beef obtained from Polish Holstein-Friesian bulls (n = 24) fed different dietary treatments containing the addition of herbal preparations (treatments: control, one and two herbal preparations). Between the 9th and 14th day of ageing, moisture and expressible water contents, Warner–Bratzler Shear Force (WBSF) and intensity of untypical taste significantly decreased, whereas redness, yellowness, chroma, intensity of meat aroma and tenderness increased. Interactions between ageing and dietary treatment on pH, expressible water, cooking loss and WBSF were noted. Using two herbal preparations in a dietary treatment enabled to obtain 9-days aged beef with similar tenderness as compared with 14-days aged beef from the control treatment. Therefore, it is possible to decrease the ageing time of beef by using a well-designed dietary treatment.

Applied and Emerging Methods for Meat Tenderization: A Comparative Perspective

The tenderization process, which can be influenced by both pre- and post-slaughter interventions, begins immediately after an animal's death and is followed with the disruption of the muscle structure by endogenous proteolytic systems. The post-slaughter technological interventions like electrical stimulation, suspension methods, blade tenderization, tumbling, use of exogenous enzymes, and traditional aging are some of the methods currently employed by the meat industry for improving tenderness. Over the time, technological advancement resulted in development of several novel methods, for maximizing the tenderness, which are being projected as quick, economical, nonthermal, green, and energy-efficient technologies. Comparison of these advanced technological methods with the current applied industrial methods is necessary to understand the feasibility and benefits of the novel technology. This review discusses the benefits and advantages of different emerging tenderization techniques such as hydrodynamic-pressure processing, high-pressure processing, pulsed electric field, ultrasound, SmartStretch^™ , Pi-Vac Elasto-Pack® system, and some of the current applied methods used in the meat industry.

Effect of cut type and post-mortem ageing on the technological quality, textural profile and sensory characteristics of horse meat

The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of cut type and ageing period on the technological quality, colour, texture and sensory characteristics of horse meat. Nine different cuts: loin, shoulder chuck roll, shank, outside round, tenderloin, shoulder clod, brisket, top round and striploin from 28-month-old female horses were used in the present investigation. The cuts were randomly assigned into 2, 10, 20 and 30 days’ ageing groups and ageing was carried out in a chilling room (2 ± 2°C). The results showed that there were significant (P < 0.05) differences among the cuts for the drip loss, pH and cooking loss at all ageing days; particularly, striploin had the lowest pH and highest drip loss whereas shoulder chuck roll had the highest pH value. Ageing significantly (P < 0.05) increased in pH and drip loss in most cuts with the highest drip loss ~5.17% in striploin and the highest cooking loss ~9.27% in shoulder chuck roll after 30 days of ageing. At Day 2 of ageing, no differences in Warner–Bratzler shear force values occurred between the cuts (P > 0.05). Ageing only decreased Warner–Bratzler shear force in the loin and outside round (P < 0.05). Colour parameters also revealed differences between cuts and ageing periods, particularly the L* (lightness) values ranged between the cuts from 34.38 to 37.14, 34.0 to 37.24, 33.24 to 37.07, and 34.7 to 38.92 at Days 2, 10, 20 and 30 of ageing, respectively; similarly the a* (redness) values ranged between the cuts from 16.76 to 17.81, 16.61 to 17.85, 17.46 to 19.46, and 17.72 to 20.47 at Days 2, 10, 20 and 30 of ageing, respectively. For the compression, the lowest hardness values (4.41–5.73 kg) were found in tenderloin at all ageing days. Furthermore, the scores for tenderness, flavour, juiciness and acceptability were different (P < 0.05) among the cuts at all ageing days. Ageing improved flavour of loin, shank and striploin, and juiciness of tenderloin and striploin whereas it decreased the juiciness and acceptability scores of some cuts (e.g. shoulder chuck roll). Thus, the present data provide not only useful information for horse meat producers but also important databases for further investigations.