Meats+Group+5

=Wholesale Cuts of Meat = [|Wholesale] cuts are large cuts of meat, which are further divided into smaller cuts of meat, called retail cuts. Ribs, short loin, and sirloin wholesale cuts are more tender cuts of meat because they lie along the back of the animal. Chuck and round cuts are less tender than the above, but they provide some of the more popular retail cuts. The least tender wholesale cuts are flank, short plate, brisket, and foreshank. The tenderness of wholesale cuts is largely determined by its location on the carcass. Weight-bearing muscles and muscles that are constantly being worked have higher amounts of connective tissue. Higher amounts of connective tissue are seen in the cow/pig's legs, chest, and rump (Brown, 2011).

**Rib** · Contains 7 ribs and part of the vertebral bones (Kopriva, 2003) · One of the more tender cuts of meat · Used in many different applications · Retail Cut: Rib steak (Brown, 2011) · Consists of the loin and short ribs · One of the more tender cuts of meat · Typically more expensive than other cuts · Retail Cut: T-Bone steak (Brown, 2011) · Is the waist of the animal, between the ribs and round · One of the more tender cuts of meat · Retail Cut: Top loin steak (Brown, 2011) · From the neck region · Less tender cut of meat · Retail Cut: Chuck roast (Brown, 2011)
 * Short Loin **
 * Sirloin **
 * Chuck **

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· The primal round consist of the top round, bottom round, eye round, rump and tip muscles. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Less tender cut of meat <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Retail Cut: Cubed Steak (Brown, 2011) <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· The flank is the area between the body and the hind legs <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Least tender cut of meat <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Retail Cut: Flank steak (Brown, 2011) <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· The plate is the section that is separated from the rib <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Least tender cut of meat <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Retail Cut: Short Ribs (Brown, 2011) <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 38.25pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Taken from the breast section beneath the chuck, under the first five ribs <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 38.25pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Least tender cut of meat <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt 38.25pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Retail Cut: Corned beef (Brown, 2011) <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Located on the top of the front leg <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Least tender cut of meat <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">· Retail Cut: Stew meat (Brown, 2011)
 * Round **
 * Flank **
 * Short Plate **
 * Brisket **
 * Foreshank **

Many factors influence the tenderness of meat:
==== Approximately 45 percent of the variation of tenderness of cooked beef is due to its genetics. The age of the animal at slaughter also influences its tenderness. Usually beef is slaughtered between 9 and 30 months of age. With increasing age, the decrease in tenderness is due to the changing nature of connective tissue protein found in meat, also known as collagen. Collagen is tough and fibrous but converts to a gel when exposed to moist heat and there are different effects of collagen on tenderness. Cuts high in connective tissue are naturally tough and need to be properly prepared to become more tender.(Epley, Richard) Muscles in the neck, shoulders, legs, and flank, which are used for movement contain more collagen and are usually tougher than those muscles from the loin, lower back, and rib areas, that get less exercise. As the animals age the collagen becomes stronger and more resistant to tenderization during moist-heat cooking. Depending on what the animals are fed can also factor in their tenderness when cooked. Fattening animals before slaughter is thought to increase tenderness. Animals that are grain fed reach the estimated slaughter weight sooner therefore they are slaughtered at a younger age and are slightly more tender. This also adds to the amount of subcutaneous fat on the carcass and will increase the tenderness by delaying the speed at which the carcass chills.(Brown, 2011) Opposed to pasture fed animals that tend to be less tender because their diets prevent them from reaching slaughter weight at an accelerated rate. ==== ==== There is a considerable variation in tenderness among muscles. For example, tenderloin is much more tender than the fore shank or heel of round in beef. The tenderloin usually has a small amount of connective tissue compared with the fore shank or heel of round. The amount of connective tissue present is directly correlated to the function of the muscles in the live animal.(Epley, Richard) The fore shank and heel of round are used heavily in movement and therefore have relatively large amounts of connective tissue. The most tender cuts of the animal, such as the sirloin, tenderloin, and rib eye, are found in areas where the muscles are used less therefore less connective tissue is developed.(Brown, 2011) Directly after slaughter, many changes take place in muscle One of the changes is the contraction and stiffening of muscle known as rigor mortis. Muscle is very tender at the time of slaughter. However, as rigor mortis begins, muscle becomes progressively less tender until rigor mortis is complete. With beef for example, 6 to 12 hours are required for the completion of rigor mortis. To prevent spoilage, the carcass is chilled following slaughter. If the carcass is chilled too rapidly it results in "cold shortening" and toughness. This occurs when the muscle is chilled to less than 60 F prior to the completion of rigor mortis.(Epley, Richard) ==== media type="youtube" key="dGqw2gu1zX8?rel=0" height="390" width="640"

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 30px;">**Types of Artificial Tenderizing**

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Tenderizing meat is important because it gives the meat a softer texture and is easier to chew and cut. Naturally tender cuts of meat tend to be more expensive so being able to tenderize tougher cuts could also save money as well as create a more favorable texture in meat. Here are a few different methods to artificially tenderize meats:

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">__Enzymes__: Enzymes work to break down the proteins with in the muscle fibrils which tenderizes the meat. There are different ways to utilize this method. One way is to inject an enzyme solution into the animals blood 10 minutes prior to slaughter, which will distribute the enzymes through out the animal and start to tenderize all the different areas the meats will be cut from. Another way is to apply a tenderizer to a cut of meat prior to cooking. These enzyme meat tenderizers work best with thinner cuts of meat because it wont penetrate farther than 1/2 to 2 mm. (Brown, 2011)

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> Types of enzymes used: (Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Papin (papaya)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Bromelin (pineapple)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Ficin (fig)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Trypsin (animal pancreas)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Rhyozyme (fungi)

__<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Salts __<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">: Salts in the certain forms can tenderize by retaining moisture and breaking down the component that surrounds the muscle fibers which releases proteins. The forms of salt that are used in tenderizing are potassium, calcium, or magnesium chlorides. The water retention creates a more juicy piece of meat but will also increase the sodium content so this method should be used in moderation.(Brown, 2011)

__<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Acids __<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">: Acids help tenderize by breaking down the outer surface of the meat. Applying a marinade, which contains an acid such as vinegar or lemon juice, to a thinner cut of meat and placing it in the refrigerator anywhere form a few hours to overnight will not only tenderize but add flavor to the meat as well. A way to increase the tenderness is to increase the surface area by cutting the meat into smaller pieces, since marinades only work on the outer surface of the meat. This method is often combined w <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">ith enzymes to increase the tenderizing abilities. (Brown,2011)



__<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Mechanical Te ____<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">nd ____<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">erizing __<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">: Mechanical tenderizing works by physically breaking the muscle cells and connective tissues. This can be done in different ways including pounding, cubing, needling, and grinding.(Brown,2011)

__<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Electrical Stimulation __<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">: This last type of tenderizing is sending an electrical current through the carcass after slaughter and prior to rigor mortis. This form of tenderizing works by speeding the glycogen breakdown and enzyme activity which disrupts the protein structure. The meat can then be cut right after keeping the quality of the meat intact.(Brown,2011)

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Take a look at this video, it gives a lot of great tips on tenderizing tough cuts of meat using various methods.

media type="youtube" key="wmPysixaPIo" height="390" width="640"

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 30px;">**Cooking Meat**

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">When cooking meat it goes through the process of denaturation as well as color changes. In the instance of meat as the proteins denature and aggregate back together the meat actually looses its water content. Cooking at a high heat for longer periods of time can cause excess moister loss and the meat can become dry and tough. You can however cook tender cuts at higher temperatures for shorter periods of time and still maintain the tenderness of the meats. While with tougher cuts of meat you can cook at a lower temperature for longer periods of time which can help retain moisture and tenderize.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Dry heat methods of cooking are recommended for tender cuts of meat and include: (Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Roasting: The meat should be placed fat side up on a rack to prevent to meat from sitting in its own juices, which would cause the meat to simmer. Roasts should be removed from the oven shortly before it reaches the desired temperature in order to encourage carryover cooking. (Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Frying: Meats that are small and tender that are low in fat or have a bread coating are contenders for this method of cooking.(Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Sauteing:When sauteing, a small amount of fat is heated to a sizzling point before the meat is added. Stir frying, also a type of sauteing is achieved when thin slices of meat are cooked in a oiled wok or sloping-sided pan. It is stirred on high heat for about three minutes.(Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Grilling/Broiling: High temperatures and short heating time keeps the meat tender, the amount of time the meat should be cooked varies due to the meats thickness and distance from the heat. When preparing meats using both these methods, the goal is to heat the inside of the meat while obtaining the right degree of browning on the exterior. (Brown, 2011)

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Moist heat methods of cooking are recommended for tougher cuts of meat and include: (Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Braising: To properly braise meat, it is simmered in a covered pan with a small amount of water or other liquid. Less tender cuts should be used because during this method of cooking collagen is broken down and the meat is tenderized. The most common braised meats are pot roasts including large cuts of meat and added vegetables. (Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Stewing:Stewed meat is cooked while completely submerged in liquid in a covered pan and cooked until the meat is tender. Cured meats such as corned beef or beef briskets are commonly prepared by this method. (Brown, 2011)
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Steaming: This method is most commonly used to cook large cuts of meat such as turkey, ham, or beef roasts. Meats can be steamed in a pressure cooked or in a tightly covered pan. Meats cooked in a crockery cooker will steam the meat to extreme tenderness.(Brown, 2011)

=References=

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Brown, A. (2011). //Understanding Food: Principles and Preparation// (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Kopriva, B. (2003, September 9). //Advanced Animal Science.// Retrieved from http://www.tarleton.edu. (5 Apr 2011)

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">"Wholesale Cuts Crossword." (2008). //Ore////gon 4-H Meat Animal Wholesale Cuts Series//. Retrieved from http://extension.oregonstate.edu: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/4h/4-h1001.pdf. (5 Apr 2011).

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">"Wholesale Cuts." Photo. jumpingcowgelbvieh.com. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.jumpingcowgelbvieh.com/BeefCuts.aspx. (5 Apr 2011).

<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">Kook to Cook. (23 Aug 2008). Cuts of Beef. Video file. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NH_YXYiVHiI&feature=BF&list=PL9F05E542C13211D9&index=7. (5 Apr 2011).

<span style="color: black; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">How To Make Less Expensive Cuts Of Meat Tender. by Howcast (19 Aug 2009) retrived from [] (5 APril 2011)

What is mechanical tenderizing. (28 Dec 2009) Photo Retrieved from [] (5 April 2011)

Richard Epley, Meat Tenderness.(2011) http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/nutrition/DJ0856.html (April 6 2011)