Freezing Methods Influence on Fat and Moisture Composition of Precooked Thighs

Abstract

EACH new method that is introduced to process poultry items creates new problems that must be solved before the technique achieves general acceptance. Most of the poultry that is currently processed is blast frozen, but new methods are being introduced.Marion and Stadelman (1958) studied several methods of freezing poultry meat with temperatures ranging from −12°C. to −26°C, and freezing times ranging from one-half to ten hours. The rate of freezing did not have a significant influence on the tenderness of the breast muscle. Miller and May (1965) also reported that rate of freezing did not have any influence on tenderness. Studies concerning freezing methods of turkeys (Barrie et al., 1964; Pickett and Miller, 1967) revealed no difference between blast and liquid freezing methods on the tenderness of turkeys. However, Li et al. (1969) noted lower shear values for thigh muscles frozen by liquid nitrogen process for five minutes to…