Effect of End-point Temperature and Degree of Doneness on Sensory and Instrumental Flavor Profile of Beefsteaks

ABSTRACT: Beef M. longissimus thoracis et lumborum was used to investigate the effects of 6 end-point temperatures on flavor and texture. Steaks cooked to medium temperature were associated with 4-heptanolide, whereas those cooked to higher temperatures were associated with pyrazines and hexanol. These steaks were also associated with flavor attributes, such as roasted, burnt, and beefy. However, consumers did not find differences in flavor liking of steaks (P > 0.05) cooked to 6 end-point temperatures. Although steaks cooked to lower temperatures were liked for their tenderness and juiciness, overall liking scores were not affected by end-point temperature. Thus both flavor and tenderness play an important role in consumer satisfaction.     

Fatty acid profiles,meat quality,and sensory attributes of organic versus conventional dairy beef steers

Meat from Holstein and crossbred organic and conventional dairy steers were evaluated and compared for fatty acid profiles, meat quality, sensory attributes, and consumer acceptance. Bull calves (n = 49) were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 replicated groups: conventional (CONV), organic (ORG, pasture + concentrate), or grass-fed organic (GRS) and were born at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center (Morris, MN) between March and May 2011. The CONV steers (n = 16) were fed a diet that contained 80% concentrate and 20% forage, and ORG steers (n = 16) were fed a diet of organic corn, organic corn silage, and organic protein supplement. Furthermore, ORG steers consumed at least 30% of diet dry matter of high-quality organic pasture during the grazing season. The GRS steers (n = 17) consumed 100% forage from pasture during the grazing season and high-quality hay or hay silage during the nongrazing season. The ORG steers had fat that was greater in oleic acid (C18:1) than the GRS and CONV steers (47.1, 36.1, and 39.9%, respectively). The GRS steers (21.9%) were lower for monounsaturated fat than the ORG (42.1%) and CONV (40.4%) steers. Furthermore, the GRS steers tended to have greater n-3 fat and had lower n-6 fat than the ORG and CONV steers. Consequently, the GRS (1.4%) steers had a lower n-6-to-n-3 fat ratio than the ORG (12.9%) and CONV (10.0%) steers. The GRS (2.6 kg) steers had steaks that were not different for Warner-Bratzler shear force than ORG (2.3 kg) steaks; however, the GRS steaks tended to have greater shear force than the CONV (2.0 kg) steaks. The 3 steer group had steaks that were not different for color brightness (L*; 0 = black and 100 = white) and yellowness/blueness (b*; positive values = yellow and negative values = blue) values; however, the GRS (10.5) steaks had lower redness/greenness (a*; positive values = red and negative values = green) values than CONV (14.5) steaks. For sensory attributes (0- to 120-point scale), no differences were observed for ORG (71.3) and CONV (69.2) steers for overall consumer liking of the beef; however, the GRS (56.3) steers had the lowest overall liking among beef consumers. The ORG (73.3) steers had greater flavor liking than the GRS (56.8) and CONV (69.2) steers. Conversely, the GRS (6.3) steers had the highest scores for off-flavor (0- to 20-point scale) compared with the ORG (3.9) and CONV (4.1) steers. The results of the current study suggest that a potential market may exist for organic grass-fed dairy steers in the United States, but quality and consistency of the beef needs to be improved.     

Dietary vitamin E supplementation effects on the color and sensory characteristics of enhanced beef steaks

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of dietary vitamin E supplementation on characteristics of enhanced beef cuts during retail display. Twelve steers were fed either a control (E-) diet or a diet supplemented with dl-alpha tocopheryl acetate (E+) for 117 days prior to slaughter. Paired strip loins, clods, and inside rounds served as the control (C) or were pumped (P) to 110% of raw weight to contain 0.4% sodium chloride and 0.4% phosphate on a finished weight basis. Steaks were cut (2.5 cm) for sensory evaluation and retail display. No flavor or texture differences existed in strip steaks due to vitamin E. Enhanced steaks were more tender, juicy and salty than controls, however they discolored more rapidly than did controls. Steaks from supplemented cattle were slightly, but significantly, less discolored, indicating that vitamin E may provide some improvements in color stability of enhanced meat products. Vitamin E supplementation may improve short term color stability (up to 2 days in display) of retail beef enhanced by injection of a salt-phosphate solution.     

Properties of restructured beef steaks from forage- and grain-fed cattle as affected by antioxidant and flavoring agents

Beef trimmings from cattle finished on forage or grain were restructured into steaks to enhance palatability. Steaks were treated with propyl gallate with or without a beefy flavoring agent, stored at -29?°C, and analyzed after 0, 1, 3, and 6 months. The strong grassy flavor of forage-finished beef steaks, detected by a sensory panel, was masked by the beefy flavoring agent, rendering the beef more acceptable by consumers. Propyl gallate retarded lipid oxidation and rancidity development in steaks during extended frozen storage. Microbial populations decreased while color scores, cooking yield, and binding strength of steaks exhibited only minor changes during storage. Thus, the combination of antioxidant and flavoring agents with the muscle restructuring technology provides an effective means to enhance the palatability and storage stability of beef from forage-fed cattle.     

Consumer assessment of beef palatability from four beef muscles from USDA Choice and Select graded carcasses

Consumer sensory analysis was conducted to determine differences in beef palatability between two quality grade categories [Upper 2/3 (Top) Choice and Select] and four muscles [longissimus lumborum (LL), gluteus medius (GM), serratus ventralis (SV), and semimembranosus (SM)]. Generally, tenderness, flavor, and overall liking scores were more desirable for Top Choice compared to Select, regardless of muscle. Consumers rated LL as more tender (P < 0.05) than SV and SM, but similar to GM (P = 0.52). Overall and flavor acceptability were similar (P > 0.05) between LL, GM, and SV, regardless of quality grade. Consumer overall liking was most highly correlated with flavor liking (r = 0.85). When tenderness was acceptable, flavor and juiciness played a major role in determining overall acceptability. Overall liking of GM and SV from Top Choice carcasses was superior to LL from Select carcasses and comparable to LL from Top Choice carcasses.     

Brazilian beef produced on pastures: Sustainable and healthy

With a herd of 209 million cattle, Brazilian beef production estimate for 2023 is 10,935 million tons, representing an increase of 28.9% and accounting for 20% of the world trade. Beef cattle production is constantly evolving; however, there are extremes, ranging from simple existing farm ranges to intensive forage systems, strategic supplementation, updated health and genetic improvement programs for the production of quality beef. This modern production is based on scientific research carried out at universities and other research institutions. A new generation of professionals with multidisciplinary knowledge and a holistic vision of the productive chainproposed management practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the production of grass-fed beef cattle, whose meat has high omega-3 and CLA contents. Age at slaughter of steers and of heifers at first mating, significant increases in the ratio calves/100 cows, adequate traceability for pastoral systems with hundreds or thousands of animals per farm and a more intense transference of technology are required.     

Marination with natural curing ingredients, storage time, and serving temperature effects on the sensory characteristics of forage-finished or commercially-sourced beef roasts

Beef inside round roasts (n = 144) were cut from rounds obtained from both forage-finished cattle (n = 72) and commercially-sourced beef (n = 72). Roasts were portioned to weigh 0.45-0.68 kg each. Each roast was then randomly assigned one of the following treatments: control, injected-no cure, or injected-cured. Additionally, roasts were assigned a serving temperature (hot or cold) and storage treatments (0 d or 28 d post cooking). Roasts from forage-fed beef had a more red interior color and higher shear values, and also retained more brine than commercially-sourced beef (P < 0.05). Curing roasts improved TBARS values in roasts served hot and significantly reduced sensory warmed-over and grassy flavors (P < 0.05). Marinating forage-finished beef roasts significantly improves tenderness and flavor characteristics.     

Perception and acceptance of selected high-intensity sweeteners and blends in model soft drinks by propylthiouracil (PROP) non-tasters and super-tasters

Individual variation in the perception of saccharin has been related to genetic sensitivity to the bitterness of 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP). But, data on other intense sweeteners are sparse, particularly when tasted in real foods. The objectives of this study were (1) to identify the sensory attributes of intense sweeteners that influenced perception and acceptability of citrus-flavored model soft drinks and (2) to investigate the influence of PROP taster status on these responses. The sweeteners were: 10% and 8% high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) (controls), sucralose (SUC), aspartame (ASP), acesulfame-K (ACE), ASP/ACE and SUC/ACE. Twenty-nine PROP non-tasters (NT) and 30 PROP super-tasters (ST) rated nine attributes for intensity and liking. Data were analyzed using principal component analysis (PCA). The sweeteners were described in three dimensions. Factor 1 was a bitter-citrus contrast for which overall liking was associated with higher citrus impact and lower bitterness. Factors 2 and 3 were related to overall flavor and carbonation, respectively. The sensory profiles of ASP, ASP/ACE and SUC were most similar to 10% HFCS. SUC/ACE was more bitter and less acceptable than 10% HFCS; ACE was the most bitter and was liked the least. PCA also revealed that NT placed more emphasis on the perception of sweetness and citrus flavor (Factor 1; 37% variance), whereas ST tasters placed more emphasis on bitterness (Factor 1; 43% variance). Liking was uniquely related to lower bitterness for NT. For ST, liking was negatively related to bitterness and weakly positively related to persistence of sweetness. These data suggest that ST experience intense sweeteners differently than NT but these differences play a minor role in soft drink acceptance.     

Physical and sensory characterization and consumer preference of corn and barley-fed beef

Steaks from corn-fed and barley-fed beef were characterized by a trained panel, which rated corn-fed beef higher (p<0.05) for tenderness attributes and overall flavor intensity. Canadian consumers preferred (p<0.01) cooked and raw steaks from barley-fed beef, while Mexican consumers showed no preference (p>0.05) for either type of finished beef. Japanese consumers showed a preference (p<0.05) for the appearance of raw barley-fed steaks but a preference for cooked corn-fed steaks (p<0.05). No differences (p>0.05) were observed for Warner-Bratzler shear, marbling scores, cooking losses or Hunter colorimeter values. There was a trend for higher concentrations (p<0.08) of the saturated fatty acids in the barley treatment, but no differences (p>0.10) in mono or polyunsaturated fatty acids.     

Effect of Several Sugars on Consumer Perception of Cured Sheepmeat

ABSTRACT:  This article reports the perception of cooked, nitrite-cured sheepmeat sausage that included 1.5% glucose, sucrose, xylose, or no sugar addition. The 4 sugar treatments were dry-cooked, vacuum packed, and stored chilled, and were hedonically assessed after 0, 1, and 2 mo. Consumers were advised that they could be eating any 1 of beef, chicken, lamb, pork, or turkey, in a salted cured preparation. Three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that liking of appearance, color, and texture were unaffected by sugar treatment, whereas liking of aroma, flavor, sweetness, and overall liking were markedly and significantly increased by xylose. Storage time as a factor had minimal effects on liking. In contrast, all attributes were liked more by male consumers (57%, P < 0.001). When asked to identify the meat species, lamb was correctly identified 50% of the time. With xylose, the observed frequency of lamb's misidentification as beef increased by 50% above the expected Chi-square frequency. This was largely at the expense of observed lamb selection frequency, which was 18% below expectation. When data were segregated by gender, the misidentification remained significant for males ( P  = 0.002), but was not significant for females ( P  = 0.32). The misidentification of beef for lamb may be due to the generation of Strecker aldehydes in the Maillard reaction between xylose and meat amino acids, which were shown to be greatly increased in the headspace above xylose-treated sausage. The restriction of significant misidentification to males is less easy to explain but may be associated with the possible greater sensitivity of females to volatile fatty acids, which are components of sweat.