ARS | Publication request: SENSORY DIFFERENCES IN BROILER BREAST MEAT DUE TO ELECTRIC STIMULATION DEBONING TIME AND MARINATION

Submitted to: Journal of Applied Poultry Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: November 11, 1999
Publication Date: February 21, 2000
Citation: LYON, C.E., LYON, B.G. SENSORY DIFFERENCES IN BROILER BREAST MEAT DUE TO ELECTRIC STIMULATION DEBONING TIME AND MARINATION. JOURNAL OF APPLIED POULTRY RESEARCH. 2000. V.9:234-241

Interpretive Summary: Mechanical devices are routinely used by Quality Control personnel to shear cooked breast meat and relate force needed to cut the meat to tenderness. The "conventional wisdom" is that lower shear values (e.g. less force to cut) equal more tender meat. This procedure is used to verify that meat has been treated in such a way as to maximize tenderness in the ready-to-eat product. This information is an incomplete picture of texture because it measures only force to cut. Other factors such as flavor, aroma, and moisture are not evident. To gain the complete texture picture, we subjected broiler breast meat to treatments known to affect texture, and used 8 trained sensory panelists to profile the cooked meat. The panel noted differences in both flavor and texture attributes. The value of this report is that it expands beyond a mechanical measure of force to cut, and includes 16 other attributes that contribute to the overall perception of texture.

Technical Abstract: Quality Control personnel routinely use mechanical devices such as the Warner-Bratzler shear to determine acceptable tenderness ranges for cooked breast meat. These devices are accurate and reliable, but the information generated is only part of overall quality. To have a more comprehensive assessment of quality, mechanical results must be added to the sensory perception. Sensory perception of tenderness is more complicated than mechanical measurements because humans measure more than just the force needed to cut meat. Other attributes, including flavor and moisture, are also critical to consumer acceptance of poultry meat. These attributes are made up of various components than can be rated during chewing. The importance of these sensory attributes to poultry meat quality is illustrated in this study. Commercially processed broilers were subjected to 8 treatment combinations: electrical stimulation during bleeding (yes/no), post-chill deboning time (2 or 6 hours), and marination at time of deboning (yes/no). Eight trained panelists detected differences in textural properties due to stimulation and deboning time. All 16 sensory attributes evaluated by the panel were affected by marination.