Meat Tenderness

Tenderness
• Tenderness is a quality of meat gauging how
easily it is chewed or cut.
• Tenderness is a desirable quality, as tender
meat is softer, easier to chew, and generally
more palatable than harder meat.
• Consequently, tender cuts of meat typically
command higher prices.
Three main factors impact the tenderness of
meat:
(1) background toughness related to collagen
content
(2) rate of tenderization during aging
(3) muscle contraction during the onset of rigor
 Tenderness
RIGOR
Toughness

Freezing

Time post mortem

 Pre-slaughter factors affecting the
tenderness
• Genotype effects
– Chicken vs beef vs mutton
– Bos indicus vs Bos taurus
– IMCT and chemical nature of collegen
• Age effects
– Age is directly proportional to toughness
– Increased cross linkages in collegen
– Reduced solubility of collegen
 Pre-slaughter factors affecting the
tenderness
• Gender effects
– Toughness: Male > Castrated > Female
• Handling effects
– Stress: PSE, DFD
 Post-slaughter factors affecting the
tenderness
• Post mortem glycolysis
– Rigor shortening
– Cold shortening (10-10 rule: 10’C temp should reach
after 10 hours)
– Heat Shortening
– Extent of ultimate pH: 5.7 to 6.0 vs >6.0
• Muscle stretching
– Hanging method: Achilles vs hip suspension
– Tender cut
– Elastic sleeve
– Role of contracted connective tissue in toughness
 Post-slaughter factors affecting the
tenderness
• Aging
– Proteolytic breakdown
• Chemical intervention
– Tenderizing enzymes: papain, bromelain etc.
– Injection of ionic solution: CaCl2
– Use of organic acid
• Low pH activates cathepsins
• Connective tissue breakdown