CHRM1130 Protein Basics

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CHRM1130Protein Basics

• Meat Identification Fabrication
• Part I

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Ingredient and Materials Knowledge Goal

• Describe the composition and structure of meat
  and tell how it relates to meat selection and
  cooking methods.
  
• Identify the primal cuts of assorted meat to
  include beef and veal.
  
• Identify wholesomeness and quality standards in
  meat
  
• Discuss handling and storage methods meat.

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Meat

• the flesh of furred animals. In the U.S. beef is
  the most popular meat. Pork has a substantial
  share of the market with more than two thirds of
  it sold as cured products. Veal and lamb have a
  relatively small but important share as
  alternatives to beef and pork. Meat generally
  consumes the largest portion of your purchasing
  dollar. Thus, you must learn how to purchase meat
  in a form that best suits your needs, how to
  store and cook it to preserve

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Cooking Meat

• Cooking of a particular cut of meat requires the
  knowledge of where the piece was derived from the
  carcass. This will influence whether moist or
  dry heat should be used. Meats that have come
  from muscles that have been used such as the leg,
  round, and shoulder area of the animal are tough.
  The connective tissues have built up strength and
  the fibers are stronger here. Areas that have
  seen little or no use, such as the tenderloin,
  are tender and require a different type of
  cooking. The tissues are soft, with much
  intra-muscular fat. The most important reason to
  cook meat is to make it tender by softening the
  collagen connective tissues. Excessive heat,
  however, can actually toughen meat because heat
  causes the muscle fibers in the lean portion of
  the muscle to shrink and lose water. Over
  cooking makes meat tough, rubbery, stringy and
  dry.

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How the muscle tissues of meat react to heat

• When the steak hits the hot pan, many reactions
  occur simultaneously Fats melt, rendering out
  and lubricating the meat. This occurs at a low
  temperature, as low as 100 degrees in some
  casesThe protein in the meat, which is composed
  of primarily water, starts to immediately change
  into vaporthis vapor carries the glycogen or
  blood sugar to the surfacethis sugar is composed
  of sucrosewhen heated it slowly changes color,
  progressively deepening to a rich dark brown
  color.

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How the muscle tissues of meat react to heat

• This adds to the flavor of the meat, and the
  flavor takes on the richness based on at least
  100 different reaction products, among them the
  sour organic acids, sweet and bitter derivatives,
  many fragrant volatile molecules and brown
  colored polymers. At a higher temperature, the
  Maillard Reaction occurs. This only happens at a
  high rate of temperature (300-500 degrees F). The
  carbohydrate of the sucrose reacts with the
  amine-protein group and a brown coloration and
  full intense flavor results.

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How the muscle tissues of meat react to heat

• Proteins coagulate at 140-145 degrees F, and
  causes the residual water to burst out of the
  cell wallsthis is what can cause meat to become
  too tough in the cooking process Think of
  cooking meat as a race against time/toughnessyou
  want the surface to develop all of the wonderful
  flavors, and carry through, without losing the
  tenderness for palatability.

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Muscle composition Why some cuts tender and some
are tough.

• Meat from furred animals consists of edible lean
  muscular tissue, connective tissue which is
  primarily protein based but too tough to be
  edible, fat, and bones.
• The carcass is divided up into large manageable
  pieces called primal cuts. The primal cuts are
  based on musculature and location. Primal cuts
  are very rarely cooked whole rather, they are
  cut into smaller cuts called Sub-primal cuts.
  These cuts in turn are cut into even smaller,
  more manageable portions called fabricated cuts.
  These are represented by steaks, chops, stew
  meat, etc.

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Meat is composed of

• 72 water
• 20 protein
• 7 fat
• 1 minerals.

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Muscle fiber vs. connective tissue

• The thickness of the cells, the size of the cell
  bundles and the connective tissues holding them
  together form the grain of the meat and determine
  the meats texture. When the fiber bundles are
  small, the meat has a fine grain and texture.
  Grain also refers to the direction in which the
  muscle fibers travel. When an animal fattens,
  some of the water and proteins in the lean muscle
  tissue are replaced with fat, which appears as
  marbling.

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Collagen vs. Elastin

• Collagen
• Protein based, white, dissolvable substance that
  is connective tissue between muscles. It breaks
  down in the presents of low heat and moisture.
  Tenderized by acids. In slow cooking, collagen is
  broken down into gelatin and water.
• Elastin
• Protein based, yellow colored, connective tissue
  that is not broken down by heat or moisture.
  
• Only removal in meat or mechanical breaking up of
  the fibers in processed meat products can
  tenderize a product.

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How can you tell a tender cut from a tough one
before cooking?

• Location on carcass dictates tough or tenderness
  from actual muscle usage.
  
• Length of fibers- short tender, long and
  stringytough
  
• Amount of intramuscular fat or marbling.

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Inspection Grading

• Inspection
• Guarantee of wholesomeness, not quality or
  tenderness. Animal not diseased and meat is
  clean.
  
• Indicated by round inspection stamp USDA
• Required by federal law- all meat must be
  inspected.
  
• Grading
• Grading is a quality designation
• Indicated by a shield stamp
• It is not required by law. Reliability of private
  grades depends only upon the reputation of the
  packer.
  

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Aging meats

• A means by which meat fibers break down and get
  tender.
  
• The enzymes of decomposition continue to function
  after death. If meat is held in a clean and cold
  environment, this break down function renders the
  meat more palatable, and tender. Aging meat is a
  procedure that requires, a clean environment,
  free from dangerous bacteria, not just cold, but
  the correct humidity.

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Aging meats

• Wet aging Primal cuts that are wrapped in a
  Cryovac plastic wrap. Air tight and moisture
  proof, cuts are held in vacuumed packed plastic
  and age. Bacteria and contaminants are sealed
  out, and moisture is sealed in, so the meat
  doesnt loose water weight. Unfortunately for the
  consumer, when cooking wet aged meat, there is
  much moisture loss during this process.

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Aging meats

• Dry aging Dry aging is the process of storing
  meats, usually large cuts, under carefully
  controlled conditions. The meat is not packaged
  or wrapped and is exposed to air on all sides.
  Temperature, humidity, and air circulation are
  precisely controlled to prevent spoilage.
  Ultraviolet lights are sometimes used in aging
  coolers to kill bacteria.

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Irradiation

• Exposing meat to radiation to kill harmful
  bacteria such as e-coli.
  
• Upside meat can be kept longer, and bacteria is
  destroyed.
  
• Downside Meat has molecular damage and unknown
  long term effects due to the radiation/
  consumption. Also, radiation by-products need to
  be safely stored and disposed ofmajor issue.

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Butchering and dressing

• Slaughtering, processing and fabrication of large
  animals for human consumption.
  
• After the animal is killed and bled and the hide
  removed, the animal is inspected for sores,
  tumors, bruises and other flaws.
  
• If the meat is deemed safe and sanitary, it is
  then broken down into carcasses, partial
  carcasses, primal cuts and fabricated cuts.

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Butchering and dressing

• Carcasses
• Whole animal, minus the entrails, head, hooves
  and hide. Rarely seen anymore in food service.
  Replaced by boxed beef or primal cuts. Lack of
  trained meat cutters and labor costs.
• Sides, quarters, foresaddles, and hindquarters or
  saddles
  
• Again, these larger cuts are no longer frequently
  used in food service.
  
• Beef is cut into halves through the back bone.
  Sides are divided between the 12 and 13th ribs
  into forequarter and hindquarter sections.

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Primal cuts

• Wholesale cuts that are the industry standards.
  These are the primary divisions of the larger
  cuts. They are smaller and more manageable in
  many food service kitchens. Are still large
  enough to allow a variety of different cuts for
  different uses or needs. And are easier to
  utilize completely than quarters or halves.

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There are 8 primal cuts according to the National
Livestock and Meat Board

• Eight Primal Cuts of Beef
• chuck
• rib
• short loin
• sirloin
• round
• brisket/shank
• short plate
• flank

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Veal there are 7 primal cuts according to the
National Livestock and Meat Board

• Seven Primal Cuts of Veal
• shoulder
• rib
• loin
• sirloin
• leg
• breast/shank
• flank

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After Primal Cuts

• Sub primal cuts
• Subprimal cuts are cut from a primal down to a
  more manageable size.
  
• Fabricated cuts
• Even smaller cuts for foodservice, such as
  roasts, steaks, chops, cutlets, stewing meats,
  ground meat and so forth as set forth by the
  IMPS/NAMPS specifications.

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Purchasing meats

• Getting value
• Specifications
• Size
• Weight
• Quality grade
• Yield grade
• portion size or NAMPS

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Purchasing meats

• Deliveries
• Check specifications
• Check weight
• Check condition
• Check state
• Store properly
• Wrapped to prevent burn
• Vapor proof wrapping to prevent freezer burn.
• Label and date.
• Keep less than 6 months if fatty cut/type fat
  oxidation