The Establishment of Evaluation Models for the Cooking Suitability of Different Pork Muscles

Pork is the main meat consumed by Chinese people. In this study, the sensory quality of four muscles (loin, shoulder, belly, and ham) under three cooking methods (boiling, scalding, and roasting) was examined, and the edible quality and nutritional quality of fresh meat were determined at the same time. Principal component analysis, cluster analysis, correlation analysis, and analysis of the coefficient of variation were used to determine key quality indicators, from which comprehensive quality evaluation equations were established. The results showed that, when meat was boiled, the comprehensive quality evaluation model was Y=0.1537X1+0.1805X2+0.2145X3+0.2233X4+0.2281X5 (X₁~X₅ are a*, fat, odor, tenderness, and flavor, respectively) and the most suitable muscle was belly; when meat slices were scalded in a hot pot, the comprehensive quality evaluation model was Y=0.1541X1+0.1787X2+0.2160X3+0.2174X4+0.2337X5 (X₁~X₅ are a*, fat, odor, tenderness, and flavor, respectively) and the most suitable muscle was belly; when meat was roasted, the comprehensive quality evaluation model was Y=0.1539X1+0.1557X2+0.1572X3+0.1677X4+0.1808X5+0.1845X6 (X₁~X₆ are flavor, marbling, elasticity, cooked flesh color, tenderness, and flesh color, respectively), and the most suitable muscles were belly and shoulder.