Further Processing

What is the purpose of further processing?

Preservation (inhibit microbial growth) and add value (flavor, convenience, variety)

Who were the first to salt meat?

Sumerians over 5,000 years ago

How did Ancient Hebrews salt their meat?

Via the Dead Sea 4,000 years ago

How did Native Americans “accidentally” discover meat smoking?

Meat was hung from the tops of teepees to discourage scavengers, allowing smoke from fire to rise and combine with the hung meat

Curing

The addition of salt, sugar, and nitrite/nitrate to meats for purpose of preservation, flavor enhancement, or color development

What are the modern-day functions of curing?

Primarily done for flavor development, though has other functions:

• Shelf-life extension

• Development of unique properties

• Resistance to rapid deterioration

• Controlling microbial growth

Salt as a Curing Ingredient

• Purpose: Preservative, flavor, bacteriostatic, osmosis

• Forms: granular or rock

• Quantity of NaCl in each salt type differs—some have more impurities

Sugar as a Curing Ingredient

Purpose: flavor (balances salt), source of bacterial energy, lowers acidity of cure solution

Forms: Sucrose (brown sugar), dextrose (refined corn sugar), Corn syrup solids

Why do commercial cures use corn syrup solids for sugar curing?

It is less expensive

Nitrites and Nitrates as a Curing Ingredient

Purpose: Flavor (prevents warm-over), prevents rancidity, bacteriostatic, contributes to the cured pink color

Forms: Potassium, sodium nitrites (NO2), or nitrates (NO3)

Prague Powder / Cure Salt

Commercial name for nitrites and nitrates

• Can be lethal in high doses

Nitrite (NO2) is the (reduced/oxidated) form

Reduced

Nitrate (NO3) is the (reduced/oxidated) form

Oxidated

Why does the industry use nitrates more than nitrites?

It reacts slower

(T/F) — Nitrites and Nitrates are never carcinogenic

False—they can be

FSIS allows the use of nitrate (NaNO3 or KNO3) ONLY in what product(s)?

Dry cured meats or dry sausage

FSIS permits the use of nitrites (NaNO2 or KNO2) in what product?

Bacon

Ingoing nitrite level of bacon

Before cooking; cannot exceed 120 ppm

Outgoing nitrite level of bacon

After cooking; must not exceed 40 ppm

Basic Cure Reaction

Myoglobin (purplish red) + Nitric Oxide = Nitric Oxide Myoglobin (red)

How is Nitric Oxide generated?

During a curing sequence, where bacteria transform nitrate → nitrite

• NaNO3 → NaNO2 → HONO → NO

Nitric Oxide in myoglobin is (stable/unstable)

Unstable

How can Nitric Oxide’s color be “fixed” into meat?

By heating to 140 degrees

Fixation Reaction

Nitric Oxide Myoglobin (red) + Heat (stabilizer) = Nitrosylhemochromagen (cured pink)

What is Nitrosylhemochromagen responsible for?

Stable cured-pink color caused by heating

Overall Curing Reaction

Myoglobin + NO → Nitric Oxide Myoglobin + Heat → Nitrosylhemochromagen

Ascorbates

Adjunct curing ingredient responsible for aiding and speeding up proper color development

Alkaline Phosphates

Adjunct curing ingredient responsible for increasing water holding capacity (WHC) of muscle proteins

Alkaline Phosphates may not exceed __ in meat

0.5%

Water

Adjunct curing ingredient that disperses cure throughout meat, reducing the cost of products

Remaining water in retail product is termed?

Added Water

How is added water calculated?

PFF Value = (% of meat protein) / (100%-of fat) x 100

What does FSIS use PFF for?

Regulating the amount of moisture in the final product and communicating such information via labelling for consumers

Ham PFF

Minimum 20.5%

Ham with Natural Juices PFF

Minimum 18.5%

Ham, Water Added PFF

Minimum 17% PFF

Ham and Water Product PFF

Less than 17%

Dry Curing

Slow process

• Salt or salt + nitrite/nitrate

• Involves rubbing cure mixture of surface

• Penetration of NaCl occurs through osmosis

• Bone sour (souring around bones) can occur in hams

• High levels of product weight shrink/loss

Liquid Curing

“Pickling” or submerging meat in brine

• “Sweet pickle” when brine contains sugar

• More uniform cure distribution

• Bone sour possible

• Yeast growth possible

Injection Curing

Most common curing method

• 3 Types: Stitch/spray, artery, machine

• Rapid penetration of cure into meat

• Less spoilage and shrinkage

• Not conducive to development of typical flavor, aroma, texture

Stitch or Spray Pumping

Cure is directly injected into meat with needles

Artery Pumping

Accomplishes best possible distribution of cure; cure is disperesed via capillaries

Machine injection

Used by most commercial facilities

Materials used to smoke meat come from?

Hardwood sawdust or chips

Phenols — Smoke Component

Adds aroma and flavor; acts as an antioxidant

Alcohols — Smoke Component

Carrier of other components

Organic Acids — Smoke Component

Skin formation, preservation

Carbonyls — Smoke Component

Color and flavor

Hydrocarbons — Smoke Component

Undesirable, carcinogens

Gases — Smoke Component

CO2, CO, O2, N2, H2O, etc

Dispersed phase of Smoking

Consists of parts that are 2-3 micrometers in size

• Tars, soot, charcoal, and resins

Gaseous phase of Smoking

Not visible

• Phenols, acids, carbonyl compounds

Benefits of smoking

• Flavor and odor enhancement

• Color development on outside of product

• Preservation of the product

Liquid smoke

Widely used in the industry

• Removes carcinogens

• Cheaper and quicker

• Wood combustion products dissolved in water

(T/F) — Any meat species can be used to produce sausages

True

What is the most utilized raw meat source for sausages? Why?

Pork; its cheaper

What are sausages and canned meats most often produced from?

Trimmings resulting from fabrication of carcasses into primals/subprimals

Salt-soluble, heat-coagulable proteins (SSHCP)

Actin, myosin, and actomyosin

• Relative SSHCP content influences the ability of meat to bind

Binding Index

Ranges from 0-100

Bull meat—binding index

100—contain a high concentration of SSHCPs

Binders

Animal tissues with a binding index of 50 or greater

Fillers

Animal tissues with a binding index lower than 50

SSHCPs help to emulsify what two things?

Fat and water

Emulsion

A mixture of two immiscible liquids (water : oil/fat)

Dispersed phase of emulsion

Fat

Continuous phase of emulsion

Water

(T/F) — Sausage is normally made of only one meat source

False

Sausage Maker’s Square

Determines fat % in product of each two lean meat sources

Which type of sausage has the most fat %?

Breakfast sausage

Steps of Sausage Processing

1. Grinding

2. Mixing

3. Chopping / Fine Grinding

4. Stuffing

5. Thermal Processing

Sausage Processing — Grinding

Whole muscle pieces or trim chunks ground to form uniform cylinders of fat and lean

Grinder Parts — What is A?

Grinder knife

Grinder Parts — What is B?

Auger

Grinder Parts — What is C?

Grinder end plate

Sausage Processing — Mixing

Fat and lean components are tumbled to give uniform distribution of fat and lean

• Also aids in extraction and coating of fat particles with salt-soluble proteins

Sausage Processing — Chopping/Fine Grinding

• Chopping — used for greater particle size reduction and greater degree of emulsification

• Fine Grinding — fine grinding plate

Sausage Processing — Stuffing

Stuffers extrude sausage emulsion into casings

Sausage Processing — Casing

• Determines shape of sausage

  • Can be made from natural sources (stomachs, intestines) or artificial (cotton linters, beef hides)

Sausage Processing — Cooking

Optional process—sausages are cooked to achieve final properties

• Helps coagulate the protein matrix formed by emulsification

• Cured sausages heated to stabilize nitrosylhemochromagen

Spices

Made from plants; not distinguished from one another; come from tropical aromatics

Herbs

Derived from species that grow in temperature zones

USA Classifications — Fresh Sausage

Raw/unsafe for consumption — fresh pork sausage, bratwurst

USA Classifications — Uncooked Smoked

Raw/unsafe for consumption — Keilbasa

USA Classifications — Cooked and Smoked

Cooked/safe for consumption — Frankfurter (hotdog), German-style

USA Classifications — Fermented

Somewhat safe for consumption (depends on length of fermentation) — Pepperoni, Salami

USA Classifications — Luncheon Meats

Bologna