Meats

2. Meats • Usually the most expensive of all food items • 30-70% of food cost • 20-40% of operating cost

3. Make-up: • 75% water, 20% protein, 5% fat • Shrinkage and deterioration • Humidity • Temperature

4. Animal Fat • 5% of animal tissue • 30% of carcass? • Bred and raised leaner • Some fat is desirable . . .

5. Fat is not all bad! • Juiciness • Marbling • “Juiciness” when eating • Tenderness • Muscle fibers separated by fat • Surface Fat • Protects during cooking • Flavor • The “Beefy” flavor is fat soluble

6. Meats 3 • Connective Tissue is Tough to Eat! • Collagen and elastin • Old versus young • Use of muscle • Marbling

7. ROT for Cooking • Much collagen? • Long, slow, moist cooking. • Collagen dissolves into gelatin and water • Much elastin? • Remove • Mechanically tenderize • Grind, cube, slice very thin, pound, • Break up the fibers!

8. Meats: Inspections and Grading • Authorized by Agricultural Marketing Act • The Wholesome Meat Act • All meat must be inspected • Grading is voluntary • Quality • Yield

9. The Seal of Approval? • The Circular Inspection Stamp • Wholesome and Fit for Human Consumption • The Shield shaped Grading stamp • A Quality Designation • Clearly specified

10. Beef Prime Choice Select Standard Commercial Utility Cutter Canner Veal and Lamb Prime Choice Good and more Quality

11. Quality • Proprietary Quality Grade? • Caveat Emptor! • Know your supplier • You can none-the-less specify USDA grade

12. Yield • Ratio of fat to meat • 1 is highest yield • Beef 1-5 • Pork 1-4 • Lamb/Mutton 1-5 • Veal is not yield graded • Naturally lean

13. Aged Meat? • Green Meat • Myosin and Actin • Stiff and inelastic

14. Tenderize: Natural High temperature Enzymatic Vacuum aging Electrical stimulation Tenderize: Dry aging May lose up to 20% of moisture content Wet aging Less initial moisture loss Greater cooking loss Aged Meat?

15. Aged Meat • Slightly changed flavor profile • If meat smells (or tastes) spoiled, it probably is

16. Meat Cuts7 • Four forms: • Carcass • Partial carcass • Primal cut • Fabricated cuts (pre-fabs) • IMPS or NAMPS

17. Bone Structure • Important to know: • Help identify a cut of meat • Help minimize loss when de-boning • Help you avoid messy carving/carving loss

18. Know the carcasses

19. Cooking Meats8 • Low temp if possible • ID-the connective tissue/cut • ROT for cooking methods: • Moist heat • Larger or tougher cuts • Dry heat • Smaller or tender cuts

20. Rib and Loin Cuts • The most tender (on any animal) • Beef and Lamb • Often served rare to medium: roast, broil or grill. • Veal and Pork • Generally eaten (more) well done: as above,but also braised on occasion.

21. Leg or Round • Beef (round) • Typically less tender braise • Roasting OK for Prime or Choice • Marbling • Long cooking time - beef’s own moisture helps tenderize

22. Leg or Round • Veal, Lamb or Pork (leg) • More tender than beef • Younger!! Excellent for roasting

23. Chuck or Shoulder • Beef Braise • Veal, Lamb and Pork Braise or Roast • NB: The shoulder may be tender, but will have multidirectional muscle tissue

24. Shanks, Breasts, Briskets and Flank • Usually not tender even on young animals • Shanks are high in collagen: excellent for braising • Beef flank, if carefully cut across the grain, can be broiled: London Broil

25. Mechanically tenderized meats, such as cubed or ground, can be cooked by dry or moist heat • Searing and blanching? . . . does not seal in the juices !

26. Do not cook meats when frozen • Does not retain or increase moisture • Same or slightly increased (delayed) • Complicates the cooking process • Timing • Surface dry and done - center frozen • Waste of energy and time

27. Doneness? • Dry heat vs. Moist heat • Carry-over cooking • Critical for product quality

28. Doneness? • Color Change • Red Meats • “Blue” • Barely seen the heat, cold and “blue” center • “Rare” • Browned surface, thin grey layer, red interior, slightly warm. • “Medium” • Browned surface, more grey, pink center. • “Well Done” • Grey throughout

29. Doneness? • Interior temperature the best approach: • Beef: • Rare: • 130 F • Medium • 140-145 F • Well done • 160 F

30. Doneness for White Meats? • Pork: • Cooked well done: 160-170 F • Must pass 137 F throughout for minimum 10 seconds to avoid trichinosis! • Play it safe and hit 150 -155 F (FDA) • Veal • Generally cooked well done • Hues of pink increasingly accepted in the most tender cuts

31. Doneness by Touch? • Takes much experience! • Small steaks/chops • Touch the raw product first! • Rare: Firmer, but still soft and pliable • Medium: Firmer, springs back • Well done: Firm, does not yield to pressure

32. Dry Heat Meat Cookery • Seasoning • If you season just prior to roasting • Only fractions of an inch will be seasoned • Browning will be retarded • 3 choices: • Season several hours/days in advance • Season after roasting • Do not season, but have a well seasoned sauce

33. Roast fat side up • Basting only needed for lean meats • Baste with fat, not stock • Bard (cover with fat) or lard • Broil, grill, pan broil • browning and internal doneness • ROT: the shorter the cook time (the rarer the interior), the higher the temperature • brush with oil if necessary, avoid the “oil dip”

34. Sauté and Pan Fry • Only tender cuts! • The smaller or thinner the piece the higher the heat • ROT for sauté: • Hot pan • Do not overcrowd • Flip only as needed • Deglazing

35. Moist Heat Cookery • Simmering • Fresh meats, start with boiling liquid • Cured or smoked meats, start with cold liquid • Braising • Stewing

36. Meats “elsewhere” • Grain fed versus “double duty cow” • Horsemeat • Goat • Increasingly found in US

37. Veal • Formula (milk) fed • Farming conditions? • Free-range • Color of flesh is indicator • Milk fed • White (pork-like) • Grain fed • Reddish flesh

38. Veal • Two general types: • “Special Fed” (85% of market) • “Bob Veal” (15% of market) • Special Fed (a.k.a. milk- or formula-fed): • Removed from the cow within 3 days • Fed a nutritionally balanced soy or milk based diet until 16-18 weeks • Sent to market upwards of 450 lbs.

39. Veal • Bob Veal • Very young calves • No more than three weeks old • Usually no more than 150 lbs.

40. Lamb and Mutton • Lamb • Most 6 (3) months to 1 year • Less than 3 months: Milk lamb • I year: yearling • Thereafter it is mutton • Lamb versus Mutton • Tenderness, cooking methods, doneness, flavor

41. Variety meats (offal) • Two categories • Glandular meats • Liver, kidney, sweetbread, brains • Muscle meats • Heart, tongue, oxtails, and tripe

42. Glandular • Liver • Easy to prepare • Remove outer skin and tough membranes • Cut on the bias • Cook carefully and to order • Slightly pink or it will be dry • Calf liver the most tender and prized • Beef also OK • Pork mostly used in pate and sausage

43. Glandular • Kidneys • Lamb and Veal best • Dry heat • Beef OK • Moist heat • May need blanching or milk marinades • Split in half • Remove any white fatty tissue and veins

44. Glandular • Sweetbreads • (Thymus glands of young cattle) • Soak • Blanch and refresh in ice water • Remove membrane • Press? • Braise or Sauté

45. Glandular • Brains • Low priority in the US • Delicacy elsewhere • “Mad Cow Disease” . . . .

46. Muscular • Heart (Veal or Beef) • Tough • Casseroles and forcemeat preparations • Beef (veal) Tongue • Fresh, cured or smoked • Braised: Entrée or as “deli meat” • Oxtail • Very high gelatin and good flavor • Excellent for soups and stews • Cut between joints

47. Receiving and Storing Meats • Fresh • Check upon arrival • If not vacuum packed do not wrap tightly • Molds and “off” flavors may develop • Store at 32-36 F • Separate by type • Fresh below cooked • Unless you have proper facilities, use quickly (2-4 days)

48. Receiving and Storing Meats • Frozen • Check upon arrival: Receive frozen! • Store at 0 F or colder • Lean meats max 6 months • Fattier meats (pork) max 4 months • Never refreeze