Meat Processing and Spoilage Quiz

Meat Handling and Storage

• Meat should be cooked, further aged, or frozen to prevent spoilage.
• Rigor mortis should be allowed to pass before cooking or freezing for optimal culinary quality.
• The rate of spoilage is influenced by:
• Condition of slaughter and animal health
• Temperature and relative humidity of storage
• pH or acidity of the meat

Nutritional Importance of Meat

• Lean meat is an important source of high-quality protein, containing all essential amino acids.
• Meat is a rich source of:
• Vitamin B1 and B2, with pork having a higher percentage of B1
• Iron and phosphorus
• Liver is rich in iron and a concentrated source of vitamin A

Meat Cuts and Classification

• Carcass: slaughtered animals prepared for the market by cutting into manageable sizes
• Wholesale and retail cuts: separating thicker from thinner pieces and tender meat from less tender ones
• Types of meat:
• Frozen meat: frozen to an internal temperature of -2°C
• Cured meat: treated with a curing agent
• Processed meat: heat-processed canned meat preparations

Meat Color and Curing

• Myoglobin: a red, soluble protein present in muscle cells
• Hemoglobin: a red protein in blood, supplying oxygen to the animal's body
• Curing: a process of mixing meat with saltpeter, salt, and sugar, resulting in a pink color
• Nitrite: produced by oxidation of potassium nitrate, reacting with myoglobin to form nitrosomyoglobin, which remains pink after cooking

Meat Cookery

• Reasons for cooking meat:
• Improving palatability quality
• Increasing tenderness
• Sanitary purposes
• Methods of cooking meat:
• High heat: toughens and shrinks muscle fiber proteins, causing excessive moisture loss
• Cooking develops flavors in meat, changes fat and protein, and contributes to distinct flavor

Meat Structure and Composition

• Muscle fiber: a cylindrical cell with multiple nuclei, enclosed by a membrane
• Microfibrils: 1-2 μm thick, forming muscle fibers, and the basic unit of muscle contraction
• Sarcolemma: the membrane enclosing the muscle fiber
• Perimysium: a sheath of connective tissue enclosing a bundle of muscle fibers
• Endomysium: surrounds the muscle fiber, composed of reticulin and collagen
• Connective tissue: occupies the interstitial space in muscle cells, composed of collagen, reticulin, and elastin