Influence of Kiwifruit Extract Infusion on Consumer Sensory Outcomes of Striploin (M. longissimus lumborum) and Outside Flat (M. biceps femoris) from Beef Carcasses.

Lees Lees,Konarska Konarska,Mcgilchrist Mcgilchrist,Polkinghorne Polkinghorne,Tarr Tarr

doi:10.3390/foods8080332

Abstract

Actinidin is a cysteine protease enzyme which occurs in kiwifruit and has been associated with improved tenderness in red meat. This study evaluated the impact of actinidin, derived from kiwifruit, on consumer sensory outcomes for striploin (M. longissimus lumborum) and outside flat (M. biceps femoris). Striploins and outside flats were collected from 87 grass-fed steers. Carcasses were graded to the Meat Standards Australia (MSA) protocols. Striploins and outside flats were then dissected in half and allocated to one of the following two treatments: (1) not infused (control) and (2) infused with a kiwifruit extract (enhanced), and then prepared as grill and roast samples. Grill and roast samples were then aged for 10 or 28 days. Consumer evaluations for tenderness, juiciness, flavor, and overall liking were conducted using untrained consumer sensory panels consisting of 2080 individual consumers, in accordance with the MSA protocols. These scores were then used to calculate an overall eating quality (MQ4) score. Consumer sensory scores for tenderness, juiciness, flavor, overall liking, and MQ4 score were analyzed using a linear mixed-effects model. Kiwifruit extract improved consumer scores for tenderness, juiciness, flavor, overall liking, and MQ4 scores for striploins and outside flat (p < 0.05). These results suggest that kiwifruit extract provides an opportunity to improve eating experiences for consumers.

Highlights

A challenge to the beef industry has been to provide consumers with a consistent and enjoyable eating experience
The results from this study show that infusing striploins and outside flats with a kiwifruit extract improved consumer scores for tenderness, juiciness, flavor, overall liking, and MQ4 scores, which supported the initial hypothesis
There was an increase of 13.4 points in the MQ4 score of enhanced striploins, which related to a quality grade increase from a 3-star good everyday product to a 4-star better than everyday quality product [4,5]

Summary

Introduction

A challenge to the beef industry has been to provide consumers with a consistent and enjoyable eating experience. In Australia, the eating quality of beef is underpinned by the Meat Standards. The development of eating quality predictors was conducted through numerous consumer sensory panels evaluating the tenderness, juiciness, flavor, and overall liking of 39 cuts from beef carcasses. These cuts can be prepared using up to eight different methods [3], providing eating quality predictions for 135 cut × cook method combinations [2]. Eating quality predictions have been used to assign one of four quality grades consisting of: (1) unsatisfactory, (2) “3 star” good everyday quality, (3) “4 star” better than everyday quality, Foods 2019, 8, 332; doi:10.3390/foods8080332 www.mdpi.com/journal/foods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion