Ultimate pH effects on dry-aged beef quality

Felipe A Ribeiro; Soon K Lau; Rebecca A Furbeck; Nicolas J Herrera; Morgan L Henriott; Nicolas A Bland; Samodha C Fernando; Jeyamkondan Subbiah; Gary A Sullivan; Chris R Calkins

doi:10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108365

Ultimate pH effects on dry-aged beef quality

Meat Sci. 2021 Feb:172:108365. doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108365. Epub 2020 Oct 31.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Animal Science, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0908, United States.
² Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-6205, United States; Department of Biological Systems Engineering, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0726, United States.
³ Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-6205, United States; Department of Biological Systems Engineering, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0726, United States; Department of Food Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72704, United States.
⁴ Department of Animal Science, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0908, United States. Electronic address: ccalkins1@unl.edu.

PMID: 33223267
DOI: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108365

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate pH effects on moisture loss and meat quality characteristics of dry-aged beef. Strip loins from six normal pH carcasses (pH = 5.47 ± 0.02) and dark cutting (DC) strip loins from six high pH carcasses (pH = 6.69 ± 0.09) were obtained. One strip loin from each carcass was dry aged and one was wet aged, giving four treatments: DRY, DRY-DC, WET, and WET-DC. Loins were aged for 42 d. Ultimate pH did not affect the rate or amount of moisture loss, trim loss, yield, or tenderness in dry-aged beef (P > 0.05). In general, DC steaks had the lowest lightness (L*), redness (a*), and yellowness (b*) values, regardless of aging method (P < 0.05). Discoloration scores and TBARS values for DC steaks remained low throughout retail display. Dry aging significantly reduced bacterial counts mitigating the microbial damages associated with DC. Flavor characteristics of DC were not improved by dry aging when compared to dry-aged loins from carcasses with normal pH.

Keywords: Dry aging; Flavor; Meat; Moisture loss; Water-holding capacity.

MeSH terms

Animals
Bacterial Load
Cattle
Color
Consumer Behavior
Food Handling / methods
Food Quality
Humans
Hydrogen-Ion Concentration*
Muscle, Skeletal
Red Meat / analysis*
Red Meat / microbiology
Taste
Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances / analysis

Substances

Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances