Explosive Shock Wave Tenderizes Muscle Meat
Hydrodynamic pressure processing (HDP) can improve the tenderness of intact muscle meat, said Brian Bowker, USDA-ARS, at Session 165 “Food structure changes through innovative processing technologies” on Monday afternoon, July 19. HDP subjects vacuum-packed meat submerged in water to an explosive shock wave, which dramatically improves meat tenderness while having little negative impact on other meat quality traits such as water-holding capacity, juiciness, flavor, and fresh meat color. HDP has also been shown to enhance aging tenderization and improve the processing characteristics of moisture-enhanced meat products.
Research has revealed that HDP can increase the tenderness of beef loin about 20–70%, beef round about 20–60%, pork loin about 20–30%, and lamb loin 35–65%. In addition, the treated products have more uniform tenderness. Increased tenderness is likely due to the physical disruption of the sarcomere structure, direct protein degradation and alteration of enzymatic proteolysis, and alteration of connective tissue, concluded Bowker.
Stefan Toepfl, German Institute of Food Technologies, discussed high-pressure induced protein structures and cold processing of meat products. High hydrostatic pressure (HP) has been applied to meat products to inactivate microorganisms and extend shelf life. However, the application of HP induces a color change in red and white meats, giving it a cooked appearance. The addition of a pH-controlled marinade to the meat minimized discoloration following high hydrostatic pressure and increased shelf life up to 30 days.
Other HP-treated products such as turkey sausage and liver sausage can take advantage of the cooked appearance. These products also retain more moisture than conventional thermally processed products and, in the case of the turkey sausage, the sodium content can be reduced. The HP-treated liver sausage eliminated the use of nitrites.