As the Chinese New Year is approaching, many people are starting to prepare for the New Year, among which pork, beef and mutton are almost a must for every household.
Recently, a video has attracted the attention of many netizens.
In the video, the fresh meat just cut from the slaughtered cattle and sheep actually "jumped" by itself.
As a result, many people expressed concern: what is going on here?
Are there parasites in the meat?
Is beating beef and mutton still edible?
Intramuscular energy substances are not depleted
In animals that have just been slaughtered, the central nervous system has died, but the nerve endings around the muscle have not completely died, and the energy substance in the muscle, adenosine triphosphate (ATP), has not been exhausted.
Therefore, when they are slightly stimulated by the outside world, their muscles may also pulsate, which is also known as a "supernatural response", not because there are parasites in the meat.
When the adenosine triphosphate in the muscles of the animals to be slaughtered is depleted, the muscle fibers lose their "vigor" and stop beating.
Therefore, meat that "jumps" is usually fresher.
It is important to store the meat well
Some people like to eat freshly slaughtered pigs, cows and sheep, preferably slaughtered in the early morning of the same day and cooked at noon or at night.
But this way of eating meat is actually not scientific.
These meats cut from freshly slaughtered animals, also known as hot fresh meat, are soft, but if they are not treated with any cooling, after a few hours, the meat will enter a period of rigidity, the muscles will contract strongly, and then It causes the meat to become hard and taste bad.
Some people will ask, if the hot fresh meat is quickly frozen, the meat will not become hard, right?
The answer is regrettable. After quickly freezing hot fresh meat, the cold temperature will cause the muscles to contract more strongly, causing the meat to become tougher. This meat is called frozen meat.
So, is there any way to re-soften frozen meat?
The method is to quickly store the frozen meat in a low temperature environment of 0 to 4 degrees Celsius for 1 to 2 days, and the meat will slowly recover its softness, and it will always be kept at a temperature of 0 to 4 degrees Celsius during subsequent processing, distribution and sales. Environment.
This is what we usually call cold meat.
The reasons for the preservation of cold meat are these
What will happen to the meat during this process?
First of all, the protease naturally present in the meat will moderately decompose the protein to produce peptides and amino acids, so that the muscle becomes softer and easier to cut. The cut surface has a special aromatic smell.
Secondly, the anaerobic respiration of muscle cells in the muscle causes the glycogen stored in the meat to be decomposed into lactic acid, and the lactic acid is further decomposed into carbon dioxide, water, alcohol, and then volatilized, making the meat delicious, so cold meat is also It's called sour pork.
Finally, the adenosine triphosphate in the meat is broken down into phosphoric acid and hypoxanthine, producing substances that give the meat its flavor.
Therefore, not all freshly killed meat tastes good.
If fresh meat is not put into the pot immediately, it is best to undergo a low-temperature cold chain treatment of 0 to 4 degrees Celsius for several days, which will not only make the meat delicate and soft, but also inhibit the growth of microorganisms and prevent the meat from spoiling, which greatly improves the quality of the meat. Improve the quality and safety of meat.
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Remember these points, good meat buys hands
There are so many kinds of meat on the market, how can we choose fresh, high-quality chilled meat?
We can judge the quality of meat based on its color, appearance, smell and other factors.
First, take a look.
The color of cold meat is light bright red, and its surface is glossy.
Instead of cold meat, the color is dark and blood red, and its surface lacks luster.
Second, take a sniff.
Frozen meat does not have a particularly strong fishy smell, and it is fragrant.
Again, press on.
Chilled meat is elastic and can be restored in time after being pressed; non-chilled meat has poor elasticity and cannot be restored in time after being pressed.
Finally, I would like to remind everyone here that it is best to buy and cook the same day of cold meat that you buy home.
If you really can't finish it, put it in the refrigerator, refrigerate it at a low temperature of 0 to 4 degrees Celsius for 2 to 3 days, and eat it as soon as possible.
(Source: Popular Science China)