Combining two proven mechanical tenderness measurements in one steak

Area of Science:

• Meat Science
• Food Science
• Sensory Analysis

Background:

• Beef tenderness is a critical quality attribute influencing consumer satisfaction.
• Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF) and slice shear force (SSF) are common objective measures of beef tenderness.
• Understanding the relationship between WBSF and SSF under various cooking and cooling conditions is essential for accurate tenderness evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of measuring both WBSF and SSF concurrently in the same beef steaks.
• To compare the influence of different cooking methods (convection conveyor oven, convection oven, clamshell grill, open hearth grill) on WBSF and SSF.
• To assess the impact of varying cooling times (0, 4, and 24 hours) on the WBSF and SSF measurements and their correlation.

Main Methods:

• 240 USDA select strip loins were aged for 7 or 14 days, frozen, and cut into 2.54-cm steaks.
• Steaks were cooked to 71°C using four different methods and subjected to four cooling time combinations for WBSF and SSF.
• WBSF was measured using five 1.25-cm cores, and SSF was measured using one 1- by 5-cm slice per steak.

Main Results:

• WBSF values were higher (tougher) for steaks cooked in the conveyor oven compared to the convection oven (51.9 N vs. 46.1 N).
• SSF values were higher (tougher) for steaks cooked in the convection oven compared to the conveyor oven (267.5 N vs. 237.2 N).
• Correlations between WBSF and SSF ranged from 0.51 to 0.88 (P < 0.0001), with the strongest relationships observed with the clamshell grill method at specific cooling times (WBSF 24h/SSF 0h and WBSF 4h/SSF 4h).

Conclusions:

• Measuring both WBSF and SSF in the same steak is a viable method for assessing beef tenderness, yielding moderate to high correlations.
• The cooking method and cooling time significantly influence the relationship between WBSF and SSF measurements.
• Optimal combinations of cooking method and cooling time exist for maximizing the correlation between WBSF and SSF, aiding in more robust tenderness evaluations.