The Characteristics and Composition Of Meat.

What Meat is

The name meat is given generally to all edible flesh of animals used for food. The name beef is used for flesh of adult bovine or cattle, veal for the flesh of calves, unborn to about two months of age, pork for flesh of swine, mutton for the flesh of adult sheep and lamb for the flesh of sheep from six weeks to one year old. The flesh or muscle consists of fibres held together by connective tissue.  Muscles that are used most are toughest. Muscles become tougher as an animal matures.

         

The Significance of Tenderness

Tenderness and flavour are the most important palatability characteristics relating to consumer satisfaction with beef or any other meat. Research has repeatedly shown consumers are willing to pay a premium for meat that can be guaranteed tender. Considerable resources have been expended to understand factors influencing tenderness and to develop technologies capable of predicting tender  cuts.

Composition of Meat

Proteins of excellent quality-about 20%mineral matter, including phosphorous and iron-very little calcium.Fat not only around the muscles, but sprinkled through the lean part.Vitamins-some vitamin B, very little vitamin A, and vitamin C. Water

Features  of Muscle Structure Influencing Tenderness

Beef tenderness is a very complex trait. Structural elements of muscle have profound effects on the perception of tenderness. The commonly used categorization of factors influencing meat tenderness are: an actomyosin effect, a background effect, and a bulk density or lubrication effect.

Actomyosin effect

This rather new term refers to aspects of meat tenderness influenced by the condition of the sarcomeres in the muscle fibres. Sarcomeres are the smallest unit of muscle contraction and they make up the bulk of muscle fibres (cells) The proteins actin and myosin are the main elements of the saromere. These proteins combine during contraction and also during rigour mortise to form actomyosin.

Sarcomeres that are contracted (shorter) are less tender than those which are not contracted. Sarcomere length is  is affected by muscle position during rigour mortise(stretched muscles have longer sarcomeres) and the temperature  at which rigour mortise(cold pre-rigour  muscle temperature results in shorter sarcomeres).

A second feature of the saromere is the ease with which it may be fragmented after cooking. This fragility is most often caused by proteolytic degeneration of key proteins in the muscle fibre  through conditions that contribute to proteolysis such as warmer temperatures during storage and extended period of time under refrigeration. In fact, cooler (dry) ageing is recognized as one of the EASIEST and most effective ways to improve meat tenderness.

Background effect

The term background effect relates to connective tissue located throughout a muscle. This connective tissue retains considerable strength throughout extended periods of cooler ageing. Thus, even when the actomyosin effect is very low, background toughness will be caused by this connective tissue. Two aspects of connective tissue into play relative to tenderness. First the amount. The more connective tissue(comprised primarily of the protein collagen) the less tender the meat. Typically muscles of locomotion(those found in the thoracic and pelvic limbs of animals) have more connective tissue and are less tender.

The second feature of connective tissue is its heat-induced solubility. Upon cooking, especially slow cooking under moist heat conditions (braising or stewing), the collagen in connective tissue softens and solubilizes. Naturally  this reduces the contribution of connective tissue to meat tenderness. It is important to note that older animals have more cross-links within collagen than younger animals, meaning collagen of older animals is less soluble when heated. Therefore, older animals provide meat that is less tender.

Bulk density or lubrication effect

This effect is caused by intramuscular fat within the muscle (marbling). Fat might dilute the protein in a given, bite-sized portion of meat, thereby lowering the bulk density and resulting in a increase in tenderness. Fat contained between the c ells of a muscle, or within the connective tissue, could thin the connective tissue to a sufficient extent to reduce the amount of force required to cut the meat. In addition, fat provides lubrication between the fibres of a muscle and could increase the perception of tenderness. Fat may also provide some protection against over cooking--a contributing factor to much perceived meat toughness.

Characteristics of Tender Meat Cuts

Connective tissue is tenderer than that in tough cuts.

Contain less flavouring materials or extractives than tough cuts and are less nutritious.

Cost more than tough cuts.

May be cooked in dry heat (roasted).

Characteristics of Less Tender Meat Cuts  Connective tissue is tough.

Contain more flavouring materials or extractives than tender cuts and may be more nutritious.

Cost less than tender cuts

Require long cooking in moist heat (braising) to make tender.

Less tender cuts of meat may also be chopped-ground and cooked quickly in dry heat.

The Sirloin includes long and short loin plus the tenderloin which extends through both short and the rear section.

Today, usually only the rear section is (possibly to avoid some minor confusion), called the sirloin

In truth, all loin steaks are sirloin steaks Sirloin is the only cut of meat in the world that has been officially knighted: I believe that says it all.

Other Traditional Cuts

Renamed in North America

Cross Rib-Chuck: True cross rib chuck (rib chuck) comes from section 11 of the beef chart shown toward the beginning of this chapter. The United States has chosen to drop the word chuck with the result that some consumers have become confused and now believe a cross-rib is a better quality rib cut. We also now have what is called “boneless cross rib’, which is, of course, simply a chuck, but sold at a higher price

The New York Steak, which the supermarkets now often promote, and which is popular in American based restaurants, is nothing more than our old friend, the sirloin steak. New York Steaks are cut from the short sirloin, after, the traditionally popular, tender, and especially, profitable, fillet has been stripped off; hence the original name; strip loin steak. To many people, the name, strip loin lacks the exotic flavour of New York steak. Would you buy a stripped loin steak?

Think.

            As a consumer, you are much better off to order, or buy, in the super-market, a Club, or even a boneless rib steak.

Rib steak- With the bone, is often sold or served as the tenderer, with less fat, Club Steak.

Rib Eye- Is, really, the traditional, French entrecôte, but, when called by this name it is usually from heavy beef and a thinner cut.

Barron of Beef- The name Barron of Beef comes from the fact that the sirloin is the only meat, or food item, ever to be knighted.Due to the new meat regulations Barron of Beef is no longer on the market.

          In Britain, Europe, and most of the world, a baron was a very large, very important section of beef containing both long loins (or to make it simpler to understand-the carcass is halved rather than quartered -- the Barron of Beef amounts to practically the entire hind portion). It is used for large banquets, usually broiled over an open pit or as in "olden-days or in front of a very large fireplace.

            In the United States and now Canada, a baron of beef is an imprecise term-mainly a marketing or merchandising ploy-used to describe and promote less important cuts that are best suited to braising or stewing. While the exact definition of this cut varies somewhat, it is often  cut from the "eye of " round or sirloin tip--also American inventions- renamed and sold for higher profit. Baron of beef is usually served thinly cut, in sandwiches, au juice, or with some kind of beef flavoured dip. Next to the advertising of Prime Rib, This is probably the most blatant example of customer fraud in meat marketing.

Soup Bones: Once, were given away for free and often contained a considerable amount of meat. Now these bones are ground into feeds, and fed right back to the cattle. What may be left have become known as “beef” or “marrow” bones, are scrapped clean of all traces of meat, and are sold at a high price.

Hamburger-Many a child has asked: Why is a hamburger called a hamburger, when there is no ham in it? The answer of course, obvious to the adult, is because both this process of tenderizing meat through chopping and the trait of sandwiching cooked meats or sausage between slices of bread  come from Hamburg Germany. On the other hand, many adults are unaware that hamburger is not a cut, grade, or recipe for beef. Nor is it the sandwich we are all now so familiar with. Hamburger does not even have to be beef.

Cutlets or Schnitzels- are the only true original style hamburger to be found on the market today. The word Hamburger means only this ancient process of tenderizing meat.

            In any form hamburger is no more American than is the "Frankfurter ("wiener-hot dog") apple pie, or the automobile.

            In the past as in the present the U.S.A. has never been much concerned with the credibility, nor the truth of any of their claims.

        Apple cultivation originated in Central Asia, along the Tien Shan River, and in Kazakhstan, about 8000 B.C. It is possible, although highly unlikely, that an apple pie was baked(from dried apples) some where in the United States of America, say two hundred years ago. The people of China and Central Asia were baking apple and other pies, two thousand years before that.          

              Even their name is bogus for while the country was named, and is known as the United States of America there is no such place as America, on this planet or, (because place names are a human invention), in this solar system or entire universe. They could legitimately call them selves the United States of North America but area wise, by population numbers, or any other legitimate measurement; there is absolutely no justification for that country to claim that they constitute the entire Americas or for the citizens to refer to their nationality as American.

            The citizens of the United States of North America do not have a true nationality The peoples of Mexico (Mexico city has the largest population of any city in the world), or on an entirely different continent, the peoples of South American countries, especially the people of Canada—area wise Canada is a larger country than the U.S.A. which comprises of less than thirty percent of the Americas—are all Americans. The ridiculous insistence by the U.S. A. in calling themselves Americans, at exclusion of all other peoples living in the Americas, has caused much distension in the world (especially South America).

          If any one country can legitimately be called America; then that country is Canada, not the United States (See the article L'Anse aux Meadows, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia).

            But then if we did not call them Americans, what would we call them. As stated above, they are a people without a true race or nationality. When the country was first named, many of the founders actually believed they controlled or soon would, all parts of the Americas worth consideration. Many citizens of the United States of North America, especially those from Texas and some of the other more southern states, still do.

            Time has proven this idea to be, the pipe-dream of misguided individuals, all with very large egos but who were, and are, more than just a little, naïve.

             Until such time as their boarders extend over all of the Americas; they will continue to be a country without a nationality.

            I suppose we could call them Yanks, but the peoples of the southern states would surly object and in this world, a world in which nationality or race is determined by ones country or continent of origin that just does not fit.

            The United States now becomes, simply, a large group of capitalist; would be world dictators, with very imperialistic motives. 

            At best, the people become citizens of the United States of North America, but in practicality, that is far too complicated a term to use every time we refer to these people. Which I suppose is the reason they always display their flag so prominently and are so intent on destroying the life style and national identity of so many other countries.

            The greatest, most promoted, (by the U.S.A.), most bogus, legend in automobile development is the common belief that the car is an American invention and institution.

            In reality the Americans are Johnny-come lately and because they are proving to be incapable of making up for all the centuries of lost time, and after exploiting, raping and pillaging their own country to the point that there is very little left (in a dream of an unsustainable economy and way of life), they have become the worlds most dangerous and paranoid country; determined, through world domination and dictatorship to do the same in the rest of the world

      Next to stories of "The old West" the legend of "The American Automobile" is perhaps the most bogus of all

©Al (Alex-Alexander) D Girvan 1990. All rights reserved.

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