A Preliminary Investigation of the Contribution of Different Tenderness Factors to Beef Loin, Tri-tip, and Heel Tenderness

C K Chun,W Wu,D L Boyle,A A Welter,G Magnin-Bissel,M D Chao,T G O'Quinn

doi:10.4148/2378-5977.8035

Abstract

Abstract The objective of this study was to identify the relative contribution of tenderness factors for three beef muscles with similar tenderness ratings. Longissimus lumborum (LL), tensor fascia latae (TF) and gastrocnemius (GC) were collected from 10 USDA low Choice beef carcasses and assigned to a 5 or 21 days aging period (n = 60). Sarcomere length, troponin-T degradation, collagen content, mature collagen crosslink density, intramuscular lipid content and trained panel analysis were measured. Correlation and multivariate regression analysis indicated each muscle has a specific tenderness factor that contributed to the overall tenderness evaluated by trained panelists. The equations indicated LL tenderness was driven by lipid content (P

Highlights

Beef tenderness is a complex palatability trait with many tenderness-contributing components
Heel had lower lipid content than the others (2.68%; P < 0.01), while tri-tip and loin did not differ in lipid content (8.24 vs. 6.99 %; P > 0.05)
Loin tenderness was driven by lipid content (P < 0.05); tri-tip tenderness was driven by collagen content (P < 0.05)

Summary

Introduction

Beef tenderness is a complex palatability trait with many tenderness-contributing components. Out of the three cuts, heel had the highest overall collagen crosslink density (0.20 mol/mol collagen; P < 0.05), while loin and tri-tip did not differ (0.13 and 0.15 mol/mol collagen, respectively; P > 0.05). A multivariate regression analysis was conducted to quantify the relative contribution of each of the tenderness factors to overall tenderness evaluated by trained panelists.

Results

Conclusion