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Title: Effect of a Combi Oven Cooking Method on Results of Sensory Descriptive Analyses of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets

Author
item Zhuang, Hong
item Savage, Elizabeth

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/1/2007
Publication Date: 8/12/2007
Citation: Zhuang, H., Savage, E.M. 2007. Effect of a Combi Oven Cooking Method on Results of Sensory Descriptive Analyses of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets. Meeting Abstract.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Sensory flavor and texture descriptive analysis of test products has become a common analytical method for scientific studies. Descriptive profiles of meat can be affected by cooking techniques. A Combi Oven is a relatively new cooking technology in the U.S. market. It uses both moist and dry heat, either separately or in unison, to cook foods in a wide variety of ways. The benefits of Combi cooking include reduced cooking time, increased cooking yield, uniform temperature throughout the cooking chamber, ability to use cooking pouches at low temperatures, and preservation of food quality. The Combi Oven has become more and more popular in foodservice; however, there was lack of published information about its effect on sensory profiles of chicken meat. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of a Combi Oven cooking method on sensory flavor and texture profiles as compared to the conventional oven and hot water moist-heat methods previously used in the laboratory. Broiler breast fillets deboned at 24-h post-mortem were cooked with the three methods to the core temperature of 78 degrees C. Samples were assessed by a 9-member trained descriptive panel using a 0-15 point universal intensity scale (19 attributes). Our results show that the average cooking time for the Combi Oven was 18.2 min, the conventional oven method was 34 min and the hot water method was 15.5 min. Average intensities ranged from 2.0 to 5.3. There were no significant differences in the flavor and texture intensity scores among methods. These results suggest that the sensory profile of 24-h deboned chicken breast meat was not significantly affected by the Combi Oven method when compared to conventional oven and hot water moist-heat methods and that the Combi method can be used to quickly prepare chicken breast fillet samples for scientific studies involving sensory descriptive analyses.