METHODS OF MEAT PROCESSING AND POULTRY

What Is a Processed Meat?

- is a meat that has been preserved by methods such as canning, drying, or smoking,
chilling, freezing, and curing.

Ingredients In Processing Meat

- Food Additives

- Are a mixture of concentrates added to food as a result of production and processing.

- Usually added in small and exact amounts to maintain and improve the nutritional
quality of the food, enhance in stability, and make it appetizing.

A. Food Additives

Preservatives

- Are added to food to prevent the growth of bacteria, which are instrumental to food
spoilage.

Ex:

1. salt, sugar & vinegar

2. saltpeter(for curing)

3. sulfur dioxide(anti-browning agent for fruits and vegetables)

4. benzoic acid - for fruit juices and jellies

Stabilizers

- are added to food to improve consistency and texture usually polysaccharides food
gums.

Ex:

1. Guargum

2. Carrageenan

3. Gelatin used in ice cream

B. Sugar

- Is a sweet substance from sugarcane.

1. Refined Sugar - is a sugar that has been purified of unwanted impurities.

2. Brown sugar - consists of sugar crystals coated in molasses syrup.

C. Spices

- Are taken from the seeds, barks, fruits, and leaves of plants.

- Are very pungent, aromatic, and flavorful. Cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves are
examples.

D. Salt

- Hightens the flavor of various foods.

1. Rock Salt - it is grayish in color it is less refined than iodized salt.

2. Iodized Salt - salt that has small amount of iodized added.

3. Sea Salt - is distilled from sea waters, can be find or coarsely ground.

E. Water

- gives a different texture to products.

- Water maybe hard or soft.

1. Hard Water - a water that contains a high amount of dissolved minerals.

(magnesium & calcium)

2. Soft Water - is treated water, its minerals removed.

3. Tap Water - running or drinking water from an indoor tap.

4. Distilled Water & Purified Water

Methods In Processing Meat & Poultry

Canning

- The combination of heating to kill spoilage bacteria and inactive enzymes and
sealing the food in an airtight container to prevent contamination.

Salting and Curing

- These are processing and preserving by using high salt concentration. The salt holds
back microorganisms and the action of enzymes.

- The term curing means submersion of food products in solution of curing salts.
( bacon, hams, and corned beef )

Dehydration and Smoking

- These are used in the olden times to remove moisture from food.

- Smoking is usually supplementary to salting and drying.

- Salt lowers the moisture content of the product.