| Abstract: | The instrumental and sensory texture attributes of beef muscles (M. longissimus dorsi and M. semimembranosus) were compared after curing and thermal treatments. Shear, compression and puncture tests were carried out with an UTM Instron 4301 and the sensory evaluation was made with the score method. The force values obtained for puncture test gave a greater degree of correlation with the sensory tenderness, hardness and elasticity than the shear test forces. The shear test forces were found to significantly correlate with sensory tenderness only for muscles with perpendicular orientation of fibres to the direction of shear blade movement. The evaluation of beef texture with compression test was dependent on the level of sample deformation degree. The force values of compression were found to correlate significantly with elasticity and juiciness of meat up to 60% deformation levels, but at deformation levels higher than 60% appeared significant correlation with tenderness and hardness. The obtained results showed the usefulness of puncture test with proposed parameters for the instrumental measurements of beef texture. |
