Method for preprocessing meat

Abstract

The present application relates to a method for preprocessing meat, enabling the yield of heat-treated meat to be improved and rich juiciness and tender texture to be implemented.

Description

Meat pretreatment method

[0001] [Cross-reference with related applications]

[0002] This application claims the benefit of priority based on Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0150879 filed on October 30, 2024, and all contents disclosed in said Korean Patent Application are incorporated herein as part of this specification.

[0003] [Technology Field]

[0004] The present application relates to a method for pre-treating meat. Specifically, it relates to a method for pre-treating meat that improves the yield of heat-treated meat and enables rich juiciness and a tender texture.

[0005] With recent economic growth and the increase in various leisure activities, dietary consumption patterns have also been influenced, leading to a surge in popularity for foods that can be conveniently prepared using simple cooking methods or eaten out. Along with these changes, it has been reported that the proportion of multi-person households is decreasing, while the growth rate of single-person households increased by 3.9% in 2010 compared to 2005, and it is predicted that the proportion of households with two or fewer members will rise to 52% by 2030. Due to changes in dining-out consumption patterns caused by the increase in single-person households and dual-income couples, sales of various Home Meal Replacement (HMR) convenience foods—such as stews, rice bowls, and side dish substitutes containing meat products—have been steadily increasing. As the demand for processed HMR foods grows, the consumption of meat HMR products, which are the most commonly consumed items, is on the rise. These products offer the advantage of allowing consumers to easily prepare delicious meat dishes without having to purchase meat ingredients and cook them themselves. Among these meat HMR products, there has been a continued need for raw meat for frozen and room-temperature HMR that can be stored for a long time. However, in order to produce stable products, heat treatment processes are required, which leads to increased cooking loss due to muscle shrinkage caused by protein denaturation and structural changes, and issues such as a decrease in product value due to deterioration in texture quality have been continuously raised, and consequently, the need for quality improvement has been continuously demanded.

[0006] Although various pretreatment technologies are being developed to prevent quality degradation during the heat treatment of meat and to maintain sensory elements, pretreatment under incorrect conditions can lead to an overall decline in food quality. This is because excessive shrinkage caused by microstructural damage, destruction of cell membranes, and protein denaturation results in reduced yield and changes in texture. Therefore, it is necessary to establish appropriate pretreatment methods and conditions tailored to the specific characteristics of raw meat. The immersion method is a pretreatment process that allows the brine solution to penetrate the raw material through osmosis and is typically applied to materials that cannot be processed using the tumbling method. While the immersion method enables chemical surface reactions without physical shock depending on the composition of the immersion solution, it has the disadvantages of being time-consuming and difficult to penetrate uniformly to the interior. The tumbling method is a commonly used process in meat processing for curing meat products. The tumbling method allows the brine solution to penetrate the meat relatively quickly and uniformly, and by affecting the solubility of myofibrillar proteins, it helps improve water retention and texture. In addition, physical impact and chemical reactions proceed simultaneously, causing proteins extracted and bound to the inside and outside of the meat to combine with moisture, resulting in improved sensory properties such as juiciness and yield.

[0007] [Prior Art Literature]

[0008] [Patent Literature]

[0009] Republic of Korea Registered Patent No. 10-2503811

[0010] The present application provides a method for pre-treating meat capable of improving meat yield, enhancing juiciness, and achieving a tender texture.

[0011] One aspect of the present application provides a method for pre-treating meat comprising the following steps:

[0012] (a) a step of immersing meat in an immersion solution containing carbonates or phosphates; and

[0013] (b) A step of mixing the above-mentioned immersed meat in an immersion solution containing carbonate or phosphate and tumbling it.

[0014] The present application will be described in more detail below.

[0015] One aspect of the present application provides a method for pre-treating meat comprising the following steps:

[0016] (a) a step of immersing meat in an immersion solution containing carbonates or phosphates; and

[0017] (b) A step of mixing the above-mentioned immersed meat in an immersion solution containing carbonate or phosphate and tumbling it.

[0018] In this application, the term "meat" refers to edible animal tissue that can be consumed as food, and may include, for example, beef, pork, chicken, goose, duck, pheasant, turkey, lamb, goat, rabbit, deer, horse, camel, and whale meat, but is not limited thereto. More specifically, the meat may include beef such as neck, loin, striploin, tenderloin, round, round, shank, ribs, foreleg, and brisket; pork such as rib meat, neck meat, pork belly, shoulder, hind leg, loin, shank, and tenderloin; or chicken such as thigh, lower leg (drumstick), upper wing (horn), lower wing (wing), breast meat, and tenderloin (inner breast area of ​​the sternum), but is not limited thereto.

[0019] The meat pretreatment method of the present application comprises the step (a) of immersing the meat in an immersion solution containing carbonate or phosphate.

[0020] In one embodiment, the immersion solution in step (a) may include carbonate or phosphate and water or purified water.

[0021] In one embodiment, the content of carbonate or phosphate included in the immersion solution in step (a) may be 0.5 to 4 weight percent with respect to the weight of the meat being immersed. Specifically, the carbonate or phosphate may be included in the immersion solution at a content range comprising one lower limit selected from the group consisting of 0.5 wt%, 0.6 wt%, 0.7 wt%, 0.8 wt%, 0.9 wt%, 1 wt%, and 1.1 wt% based on the weight of the meat, and one upper limit selected from the group consisting of 4 wt%, 3 wt%, 2 wt%, 1.9 wt%, 1.8 wt%, 1.7 wt%, 1.6 wt%, 1.5 wt%, 1.4 wt%, and 1.3 wt%, for example, 0.5 - 4 wt%, 0.7 - 3 wt%, 0.8 - 2 wt%, 0.8 - 1.9 wt%, 0.8 - 1.6 wt%, 0.8 - 1.4 wt%, 0.9 - 1.9 wt%, and 0.9 - 1.6 wt%. It may be weight%, or 0.9 to 1.4 weight%, but is not limited thereto.

[0022] In one embodiment, the carbonate included in the immersion solution of step (a) may be a mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate.

[0023] In one embodiment, the weight ratio of sodium carbonate to sodium bicarbonate in the mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate may be sodium carbonate : sodium bicarbonate = 1:9 to 5:5, and specifically, sodium carbonate : sodium bicarbonate = 1:9 to 5:5, 1:9 to 4:6, 2:8 to 5:5, or 2:8 to 4:6.

[0024] In one embodiment, the pH of the immersion solution in step (a) may be adjusted to 9-11, specifically, the pH of the immersion solution may be 9.2-11, 9.3-11, 9.4-11, 9.5-11, 9.6-11, 9.7-11, 9.8-11, 9.9-11, 10-11, 9.2-10.8, 9.3-10.8, 9.4-10.8, 9.5-10.8, 9.6-10.8, 9.7-10.8, 9.8-10.8, 9.9-10.8, 10-10.8, 9.9-10.6, 9.9-10.4, but is not limited thereto.

[0025] In one embodiment, the immersion of the meat in the immersion solution in step (a) may be performed for 30 minutes to 5 hours, specifically, 30 minutes to 5 hours, 30 minutes to 4.5 hours, 30 minutes to 3.5 hours, 30 minutes to 3 hours, 30 minutes to 2.5 hours, 30 minutes to 2 hours, 1 to 5 hours, 1 to 4.5 hours, 1 to 3.5 hours, 1 to 3 hours, 1 to 2.5 hours, or 1 to 2 hours, but is not limited thereto.

[0026]

[0027] The meat pretreatment method of the present application includes step (b) of mixing the meat immersed in the immersion solution in step (a) with an immersion solution containing carbonate or phosphate and tumbling.

[0028] In this application, the term "tumbling" refers to a process of placing food materials into a large cylindrical container, such as a barrel or a drum, and processing them by rotating them.

[0029] In the present application, tumbling can be performed, for example, by placing a mixture of meat and immersion liquid into a barrel or drum that can rotate in a forward or reverse direction, and rotating the barrel or drum.

[0030] In one embodiment, the immersion solution in step (b) may include carbonate or phosphate and water or purified water.

[0031] In one embodiment, the content of carbonate or phosphate included in the immersion solution in step (b) may be 0.25 to 2 weight percent with respect to the weight of the meat being mixed.

[0032] Specifically, the carbonate or phosphate may be included in the immersion solution in an amount ranging from a lower limit selected from the group consisting of 0.25 wt%, 0.3 wt%, 0.35 wt%, 0.4 wt%, 0.45 wt%, and 0.5 wt% with respect to the weight of the meat, and an upper limit selected from the group consisting of 2 wt%, 1.8 wt%, 1.5 wt%, 1.3 wt%, 1 wt%, and 0.8 wt%, for example, 0.25 - 2 wt%, 0.3 - 2 wt%, 0.35 - 2 wt%, 0.4 - 2 wt%, 0.25 - 1 wt%, 0.3 - 1 wt%, 0.35 - 1 wt%, 0.4 - 1 wt%, or 0.4 - 0.8 wt%, but is not limited thereto.

[0033] In one embodiment, the carbonate included in the immersion solution of step (b) may be a mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate.

[0034] In one embodiment, the weight ratio of sodium carbonate to sodium bicarbonate in the mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate may be sodium carbonate : sodium bicarbonate = 1:9 to 5:5, and specifically, sodium carbonate : sodium bicarbonate = 1:9 to 5:5, 1:9 to 4:6, 2:8 to 5:5, or 2:8 to 4:6.

[0035] In one embodiment, the pH of the immersion solution in step (b) may be adjusted to 9-11, specifically, the pH of the immersion solution may be 9.2-11, 9.3-11, 9.4-11, 9.5-11, 9.6-11, 9.7-11, 9.8-11, 9.9-11, 10-11, 9.2-10.8, 9.3-10.8, 9.4-10.8, 9.5-10.8, 9.6-10.8, 9.7-10.8, 9.8-10.8, 9.9-10.8, 10-10.8, 9.9-10.6, 9.9-10.4, but is not limited thereto.

[0036] In one embodiment, the tumbling in step (b) may be performed for 5 minutes to 1 hour, specifically, 5 minutes to 1 hour, 7 minutes to 1 hour, 10 minutes to 1 hour, 15 minutes to 1 hour, 5 to 50 minutes, 7 to 50 minutes, 10 to 50 minutes, 15 to 50 minutes, 5 to 40 minutes, 7 to 40 minutes, 10 to 40 minutes, or 15 to 30 minutes, but is not limited thereto.

[0037] The present application relates to a method for pre-treating meat. When meat is pre-treated according to the method of the present application, moisture loss is minimized even when the meat is cooked by heat treatment, rich juices can be maintained, and a tender texture can be achieved without toughness.

[0038] However, the effects of the present application are not limited to those mentioned above, and other unmentioned effects will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

[0039] Figure 1 is a photograph showing the appearance of the raw material and the leachate after pretreatment and heat treatment of the immersion solution of chicken breast (chicken meat). Photograph A: Example 1 (carbonate tumbling after carbonate immersion); Photograph B: Comparative Example (water tumbling after water immersion); Photograph C: Example 2 (phosphate tumbling after carbonate immersion); Photograph D: Example 3 (phosphate tumbling after phosphate immersion); Photograph E: Example 4 (carbonate tumbling after phosphate immersion).

[0040] Figure 2 shows the results of measuring the hardness of the texture of each sample after pretreatment with the immersion solution and heat treatment of chicken breast. Example 1 is a carbonate immersion and carbonate tumbling sample, Comparative Example is a water immersion and water tumbling sample, Example 2 is a carbonate immersion followed by phosphate tumbling sample, Example 3 is a phosphate immersion and phosphate tumbling sample, and Example 4 is a phosphate immersion and carbonate tumbling sample.

[0041] Figure 3 shows the results of measuring the chewiness and gumminess of the texture of each sample after pretreatment with the soaking solution and heat treatment of chicken breast. Example 1 is a carbonate soaked and carbonate tumbling sample, Comparative Example is a water soaked and water tumbling sample, Example 2 is a carbonate soaked and phosphate tumbling sample, Example 3 is a phosphate soaked and phosphate tumbling sample, and Example 4 is a phosphate soaked and carbonate tumbling sample.

[0042] Figure 4 shows the results of measuring the sensory characteristics of each sample after pretreatment and heat treatment of the immersion solution of chicken breast. Example 1 is a carbonate immersion and carbonate tumbling sample, Comparative Example is a water immersion and water tumbling sample, Example 2 is a carbonate immersion followed by phosphate tumbling sample, Example 3 is a phosphate immersion and phosphate tumbling sample, and Example 4 is a phosphate immersion and carbonate tumbling sample.

[0043] The present application will be described in detail below by way of examples. However, the following examples are intended to specifically illustrate the present application, and the content of the present application is not limited by the following examples.

[0044] Experimental Example 1: Pretreatment Process of Raw Meat

[0045] Rapidly frozen chicken breast (Dongwoo Co., Ltd.) raw meat was thawed in a refrigerator and the moisture was removed using a paper towel. The weight of the chicken breast raw meat with the moisture removed was measured, and an immersion solution was prepared in an amount approximately one times the weight of the raw meat. The immersion solutions were prepared as follows: a water immersion solution prepared with water; a carbonate immersion solution prepared by mixing sodium carbonate (OCI Co., Ltd., Korea) and sodium bicarbonate (Qingdao Soda Ash Industrial co., LTD., China) in a weight ratio of 3:7, weighing 1.2% by weight of the raw meat, and adding this to water and mixing; and a phosphate immersion solution prepared by adding 1.2% by weight of phosphate (Polymix CS, Seodo BNI Co., Ltd., Korea) to water and mixing. After the stirring process, the pH of the carbonate immersion solution was adjusted to a range of 9.9 to 10.4. The raw meat was immersed in each of the above-prepared immersion solutions for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

[0046] Next, a water immersion solution was prepared by mixing water, a carbonate immersion solution prepared by weighing approximately 0.6% by weight of a mixture of sodium carbonate (OCI Co., Ltd., Korea) and sodium bicarbonate (Qingdao Soda Ash Industrial Co., LTD., China) in a weight ratio of 3:7 and adding it to water, and a phosphate immersion solution prepared by adding approximately 0.6% by weight of phosphate (Polymix CS, Seodo B&I Co., Ltd., Korea) to water and mixing it. After a stirring process, the pH of the carbonate immersion solution was adjusted to a range of 9.9 to 10.4. Each of the prepared water immersion solution, carbonate immersion solution, or phosphate immersion solution was added to the raw meat that had been immersed in the solution and mixed, and the mixture of the raw meat and the immersion solution was tumbled for 20 minutes (see Table 1). The pretreatment yield was confirmed by measuring the weight before and after each process.

[0047] Below, the yield (%) in the experimental example was calculated using the formula [weight of meat after treatment / weight of meat before treatment] x 100.

[0048] Immersion Tumbling Comparison Sample Immersion Solution Immersion Solution Example 1 Carbonate Immersion Solution Carbonate Immersion Solution Example 2 Carbonate Immersion Solution Phosphate Immersion Solution Example 3 Phosphate Immersion Solution Phosphate Immersion Solution Example 4 Phosphate Immersion Solution Carbonate Immersion Solution

[0049]

[0050] Experimental Example 2: Heat Treatment Process

[0051] The raw chicken breast meat, which had undergone immersion and tumbling pretreatment, was heat-treated using a pan cooking method that utilizes conductive heat with high heat transfer efficiency. The pretreated raw meat was placed in a pan and heat-treated over a heat source for 20 minutes. The yield was measured by weighing the meat before and after heat treatment, and the amount of water extracted was measured by weighing the leaching water separately after pan cooking.

[0052]

[0053] Experimental Example 3: Texture Profile Analysis and Measurement of Sensory Characteristics

[0054] Chicken breast samples, having completed heat treatment, were adjusted to a width, length, and height of 2 cm each and used as measurement samples. A Texture Analyzer (TA 300, Instron, UK) was used for texture profile analysis (TPA). Hardness, which indicates the force required for cutting, was measured as the height of the peak of the graph curve, while chewiness and gumminess were selected as textural analysis indicators to reference toughness or crumbliness. The measurement conditions were set with a target deformation of 70%, a trigger load of 5 g, and a test speed of 2 mm / s. A P-50 probe was used for the measurement, and the measurements for each sample were repeated at least 10 times and expressed as the average value and standard deviation.

[0055] In addition, to confirm the sensory characteristics of the chicken breast samples, a sensory evaluation was conducted on approximately 20 sensory evaluators who had completed training regarding the purpose of the experiment. The texture evaluation was performed on the samples of the Comparative Example and Examples 1 to 4 in Table 1 above. As for the sensory evaluation items, the hardness and preference regarding the texture quality of the raw chicken breast meat were evaluated using a 5-point scale. For each item, samples with strong texture intensity or preference were rated as 5 points, and samples with low intensity or unpreferred texture were rated as 1 point.

[0056]

[0057] Experimental Example 4: Results of Yield and Leachate Measurement by Sample After Pretreatment and Heat Treatment of Immersion Solution

[0058] The yield of the chicken breast samples after pretreatment with the immersion solution and heat treatment was highest in Example 1. The yield of the Comparative Example, which was simply immersed in water, was 63.2%, while the yield of Example 1 was 89.7%, showing an improvement in yield of approximately 26.5% compared to the Comparative Example. The sample of Example 3, which was immersed in the phosphate immersion solution and then tumbled in the phosphate immersion solution, showed the lowest yield, confirming that carbonate is relatively more effective for yield (see Table 2). The same trend was also confirmed in the amount of leachate remaining after pan cooking.

[0059] In the appearance photos after pan cooking in Fig. 1, the Comparative Example (Photo B) had a relatively large amount of broken meat, a rough surface, and a crumbly texture, while Examples 2 (Photo C) and 3 (Photo D) maintained the shape of the meat but some small broken pieces were observed. On the other hand, Examples 1 (Photo A) and 4 (Photo E) maintained the original shape well, had relatively excellent color, and overall, the yield and appearance quality were good.

[0060] Yield (%) Leachate (%) Comparative Example 6 3.17 12.8 Example 18 9.69 0.21 Example 28 1.65 6.08 Example 37 6.32 8.96 Example 48 7.50.93

[0061]

[0062] Experimental Example 5: Texture measurement results for each sample after immersion solution pretreatment and heat treatment

[0063] As a result of measuring the hardness (g force) of the texture of each sample after pretreatment with immersion solution and heat treatment of the chicken breast samples, Example 1 showed the lowest value at 4,764 g force, the Comparative Example showed the highest value at 10,918 g force, followed by Example 3 at 7,443 g force, Example 2 at 7,279 g force, and Example 4 at 5,867 g force. This is related to the yield, and it was confirmed that the sample of Example 1, which did not shrink during heat treatment and had low cooking loss, exhibited a relatively soft texture compared to the samples of other Comparative and Examples because the raw meat had a relatively high moisture retention capacity (see Fig. 2).

[0064] In addition, the chewiness and gumminess of the texture of each sample were measured after pretreatment with soaking solution and heat treatment of the chicken breast, and the chewiness and gumminess showed the same trend as the hardness analysis results. The chewiness was highest in the sample of the comparative example at 312.8, followed by Example 2 at 157.3, Example 4 at 128.6, and Example 3 at 126.2, while Example 1 showed the lowest value at 92.4.

[0065] In addition, regarding gumminess, the Comparative Example sample, which was pretreated only with water, showed the highest value at 1614.9, followed by Example 2 at 1012.9, Example 3 at 892.9, and Example 4 at 751.9, while Example 1 showed the lowest value at 561.8. This value for Example 1 was approximately 34% of the highest value in the Comparative Example and approximately 75% of the lowest value among the examples in Example 4. Overall, since both chewiness and gumminess were low in Example 1, it was confirmed that Example 1 had the lowest chewiness value. Based on these experimental results, it was confirmed that Example 1 had the best texture, as it was lower than other sample groups in terms of meat toughness and crumbly texture.

[0066]

[0067] Experimental Example 6: Results of Sensory Characteristics Measurement by Sample After Immersion Pretreatment and Heat Treatment

[0068] Sensory characteristics were measured for each sample after pretreatment with immersion solution and heat treatment of the chicken breast. Regarding the hardness of the chicken breast in the sensory evaluation (not mechanical analysis), the sample of the Comparative Example was measured as relatively the hardest with a score of 4.7 out of 5, and Example 3 also showed high texture intensity with a score of 4.2. On the other hand, Example 1 received the lowest score of 2.2, confirming that it felt relatively soft. As a result of the preference survey, Examples 1 and 4 showed higher texture preference with scores of 4.1 to 4.2 compared to other samples of the Comparative Example and Examples, while the sample of the Comparative Example treated only with water received the lowest score of 1.4.

[0069]

[0070] Overall, the example showed effective results compared to the comparative example sample in terms of raw material yield, hardness, chewiness, gumminess, sensory intensity, and preference after heat treatment. This confirms that the difference in effect depending on the meat pretreatment method, and that applying a tumbling process after immersion in a carbonate mixture, results in superior processing efficiency and quality of the meat product.

[0071]

[0072] Although representative embodiments of the present application have been described above by way of example, the scope of the present application is not limited to such specific embodiments, and those skilled in the art will be able to make appropriate modifications within the scope described in the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for pre-treating meat comprising the following steps: (a) a step of immersing meat in an immersion solution containing carbonates or phosphates; and (b) A step of mixing the above-mentioned immersed meat in an immersion solution containing carbonate or phosphate and tumbling it.

2. In Claim 1, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein in step (a) above, carbonate or phosphate is included in the immersion solution at a content of 0.5 to 4 weight percent relative to the weight of the meat.

3. In Claim 1, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein in step (b) above, carbonate or phosphate is included in the immersion solution at a content of 0.25 to 2 weight percent relative to the weight of the meat.

4. In Claim 1, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein the above carbonate is a mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate.

5. In Claim 4, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein the weight ratio of sodium carbonate to sodium bicarbonate is sodium carbonate : sodium bicarbonate = 1:9 to 5:

5.

6. In any one of claims 1 to 5, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein the pH of the soaking solution is adjusted to 9 to 11.

7. In Claim 1, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein the immersion in step (a) above is performed for 30 minutes to 5 hours.

8. In Claim 1, A method for pre-treating meat, wherein in step (b) above, tumbling is performed for 5 minutes to 1 hour.

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