What Causes Beef to Be Pink Before Cooking

Meat Scientific discipline and Nutrition

Meat Colour

The post mortem colour evolution of meat varies greatly from one species to another, with variations in fresh beef being very prominent. Beef shows a range of colour from first existence cut to the end of its shelf life (virtually three days).

Typical meat colour for different species is shown in Table 3.

Tabular array iii Typical colour of meat from different species

Species	Colour
Beefiness	Bright cherry-red red
Fish	Pure white to greyness-white or pink to dark cherry
Horse	Night red
Lamb and mutton	Light ruby to brick cherry
Pork	Greyish pink
Poultry	Grey-white to dull ruby-red
Veal	Brownish pink

Meat colour is pregnant to consumer acceptance of products. The brilliant red color of good quality beef, sockeye salmon, and immature lamb are naturally appealing, whereas the paler colours of veal and other fish species are less appealing to many (although more sought later by some ethnic groups). Nighttime meats such as horse are more popular in Quebec and European countries. Mutton (sheep over 12 months of age with darker flesh) appeals to an even smaller range of customers.

Factors Affecting Colour

Use of Muscles

Poultry provides a adept opportunity to see and learn about the differences in meat colour. Meat cutters and cooks may often be asked why different parts of a chicken have and other parts have , or why duck or game birds have mostly dark meat.

The colour of the meat is determined by how the muscle is used. Upland game birds, such as and bickering, that fly only for short bursts take white breast meat. In dissimilarity, ducks and geese and well-nigh other game birds that fly long distances have exclusively dark meat. In domestic poultry (chickens and turkeys), there is a deviation between breasts (white meat) and thighs and drumsticks (dark meat).

Notation: Chicken thighs, even when fully cooked, may have a reddish tinge and blood seepage from the thigh bone. This is normal; nevertheless, inexperienced customers may translate this equally a sign of non being cooked properly.

Proteins

Meat color is associated with 2 proteins: (in the muscle) and (in the claret). When animals are no longer live and air comes in contact with the meat, myoglobin reacts with oxygen in an attempt to reach a land of equilibrium, at which point no farther changes occur. As this process happens, the meat colour goes through three stages and three colours that are easy to come across, especially on freshly cut beef meats.

1. Purplish red (myoglobin): occurs immediately after a is sliced.
2. Cherry red (oxymyoglobin): occurs several minutes after cutting and after exposure to oxygen.
3. Brown (metmyoglobin): occurs when the iron in the myoglobin is oxidized, which usually takes virtually three days after cutting. (You may encounter steaks with this colour in the disbelieve bin at a supermarket. The brownish color doesn't hateful at that place is anything wrong with the product; in fact, purchasing meat at this stage is a great way to stock up on cheaper steaks for the freezer.)

Oxygen

Oxygen plays two important roles, which affect the colour in contrary means. As soon equally meat is cut, oxygen reacts with the myoglobin and creates the bright red colour associated with oxymyoglobin. This volition continue to develop until the iron in the myoglobin oxidizes to the indicate of the stage.

Oxidation tin can as well occur when iron in the meat binds with oxygen in the muscle. This tin can often occur during the processing of round steak from the hip fundamental and can be identified by the rainbow-like colours that appear from the reflection of light off the meat surface. The condition will remain subsequently the production is cooked and can oft be seen on sliced roast beef used in sandwich making. This condition does not alter the quality of the meat; however, it is by and large less bonny to consumers.

Age

The pale muscles of veal carcasses betoken an young animal, which has a lower myoglobin count than those of more mature animals. Immature cattle are fed primarily milk products to keep their mankind light in colour. However once a calf is weaned and begins to consume grass, its flesh begins to darken. Intact males such every bit convenance bulls have muscle that contains more myoglobin than females (heifers) or steers (castrated males) at a comparable age.

Generally, beef and lamb accept more myoglobin in their muscles than pork, veal, fish, and poultry. Game animals have muscles that are darker than those of domestic animals, in part due to the higher level of physical activeness, and therefore they also accept higher myoglobin.

Preventing Discolouration

Maintaining the temperature of fresh meat near the freezing betoken (0°C/32°F) helps maintain the bright red colour () of beef meats for much longer and prevents discolouration.

Meat should exist allowed to bloom completely (the flower usually reaches its peak nearly three or four days after cutting) or be wrapped on a meat tray with a wrapping film equally in supermarket meat displays. If portioned steaks are to be vacuum packed, doing then immediately after cutting (but before the bloom has started) will allow the steaks to bloom naturally when removed from the vacuum packaging.

Certain phases of meat processing tin can also trigger discolouration. Oxidation browning (metmyoglobin) can develop more rapidly than normal if something occurs to restrict the flow of oxygen once the flower has started but has not been allowed to run its full course. The two most common examples are:

• Cut meat surfaces stay in contact likewise long with flat surfaces such as cutting tables, cutting boards, or trays.
• Meat is wrapped in paper (which means there is no further exposure to air and therefore no oxygen, which speeds upwardly the browning upshot).

The browning effect will occur naturally once the meat is exposed to oxygen.

There are 2 other types of discolouration that unremarkably occur with beef and squealer meat. Although the cause of both types occurs before expiry (), the bodily change does non evidence upward until after death (mail mortem). The discolouration is a event of chemical reactions in the brute'due south body due to stresses, known as .

PSS can effect in ii dissimilar types of discolouration: PSE and DFD.

(pale, soft, and exudative) occurs mainly in pigs (and in some cases has been constitute to be genetic). PSE is brought most by a sudden increment of lactic acrid due to the depletion of glycogen before slaughter, which in turn causes a rapid reject in the pH mail slaughter. The visible signs of PSE tin be detected past the trained eye in the pork loin primal, where the mankind appears much paler than normal. The muscle meat is softer and may be very sloppy and moisture to the bear upon and leaking meat juices, a event of a high proportion of complimentary water in the tissues.

Although product with PSE is safe to eat, its shelf life is limited and it may become tougher sooner if overcooked. Products with PSE have limited use equally fresh products merely are used to industry cooked products such as formed ham and certain sausage varieties with a recommended limit of 10% (i.e., one part PSE to nine parts of regular meat), due to the high water content.

(night, house, and dry) occurs mainly in beefiness carcasses but sometimes in lamb and turkey. In the meat industry, these carcasses are referred to equally . Unlike PSE meat, DFD meat shows piddling or no drop in the pH after slaughter. Instead, at that place may be an increase of stress hormones, such as , released into the bloodstream. Consequently, (muscle sugar) is depleted earlier slaughter due to stresses. This decreases the lactic acid, which in turn affects the pH, causing it to not drop fast enough afterwards slaughter. Therefore, the muscle meat, typically in the hip area of the carcass, may become very dry and nighttime.

Even later the carcass is aged and the meat has been processed and displayed, the dark advent remains and bloom volition not occur. In addition, the meat may as well feel mucilaginous to the touch on, which limits shelf life. DFD meat is mostly considered unattractive to the consumer; however, the meat remains edible and is still suitable for utilize in cooked products and sausage emulsions but should exist limited to ten% (one role DFD to nine parts of regular meat).

Listed beneath are some causes of DFD that should be avoided:

• Transferring animals to strange surroundings (kill plant) and holding them for as well long
• Treating animals roughly prior to and during send (e.chiliad., using cattle prods)
• Overcrowding cattle during shipping
• Mixing cattle with other animals they are not used to
• Preventing animals from having sufficient balance at the slaughterhouse prior to harvesting
• Dehydrating animals (non giving them enough water) prior to slaughter
• Causing over-excitement, pain, hunger, excessive dissonance, scent of blood
• Exposing animals to temperature extremes during transportation
• Shipping stress-susceptible animals, such as intact males (bulls), during astringent conditions

Note: DFD can occur anywhere between 12 and 48 hours prior to an creature's slaughter.

Imperfections and Abnormalities in Meat

Fifty-fifty though meats arriving at their final destination (indicate of sale) take normally been approved and inspected, the product still requires further checks prior to sale and eating in instance abnormal meat inconsistencies were missed in the inspection procedure. Some of these are caused by injuries or illness that occurred while the animal was alive, while others are naturally occurring parts of the animal'due south body (glands in particular) that are removed prior to or during the cut process.

Some examples are given here.

• and : infected or non-infected tumours from old injuries that are imbedded in muscles and sometimes close to basic (Effigy nine).

Figure 9. Cyst in beef short loin.

• : usually from more than recent injuries and besides found imbedded in muscles or between muscle seams or on or near bone joints.
• : scar tissue, commonly from very old injuries, with the appearance of white fat seams or thin strands tightly jump together, making the muscle tough and cruddy.
• and : lymph nodes are glands in the throat and back of the tongue that give a good indication of the full general health of the animal; these are inspected on the animal carcass at the harvesting establish prior to being sold, but internal or intermuscular glands are not examined unless further inspection is recommended by a veterinarian. Consequently, 3 major glands are removed from beef, pork, and lamb during processing to ensure the public practice not see them. They are the , located in the neck and blade sub-primals below the junction of the fifth cervical vertebra (Figure 10); the , located at 90 degrees to the circular os on the hip on the exterior of the sirloin tip imbedded in the cod fatty pocket (Figure 11); and the , located in the exterior circular sub-central in the hip primal between the center of the round and the outside round flat under the heel of round, imbedded in a fatty pocket (Figure 12).

Effigy 10. Prescapular gland.

Figure 11. Prefemoral gland.

Figure 12. Popliteal gland.

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Source: https://opentextbc.ca/meatcutting/chapter/meat-colour/

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