USDA Agricultural Research Service, Food Quality Laboratory, 10300 Baltimore Ave, Bldg 201 BARC-East, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.
J Food Sci. 2011 Mar;76(2):S156-62. doi: 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2010.02037.x.
The objective was to determine the meat quality effects of rapidly thawing beef steaks in a water bath. Frozen beef strip loins (n = 24) were cut into steaks sequentially from the rib end and identified by anatomical location (anterior, middle, posterior) within the loin. Within location, steaks were randomly assigned to conventional (C; 18 to 20 h, 4 °C) or rapid thawing methods. Rapid thawing methods, fast (20 min, 20 °C) or very fast (11 min, 39 °C), were conducted in a circulating water bath. The physical, thawing, cooking, color, and texture characteristics of each steak were recorded. Data were analyzed as a randomized complete block design with a 3 thawing treatments × 3 locations factorial analysis with loin as a block. No location by thawing method interaction was detected (P > 0.05) for the measured variables. Compared to C steaks, rapidly thawed steaks exhibited lower thaw drip loss (P < 0.001) and higher a* values (P < 0.001). Thawing treatment did not influence L*, b*, cook yield, or shear force. Steaks from the posterior end had higher (P < 0.001) surface to volume ratios that may have contributed to the higher thaw loss (P < 0.01), longer cooking time (P < 0.001), lower cooking yield (P < 0.001), and higher shear force (P < 0.02) compared to steaks from the anterior and middle portions of the loins. These data indicate that beef steaks taken from the entire length of the loin can be rapidly thawed in a water bath following food safety guidelines with minimal impact on meat quality. Practical Application: Freezing rate and frozen storage effects on meat quality have been well documented; however, there is comparatively little information on the meat quality effects of rapid thawing within food safety guidelines. This study demonstrates that beef strip loin steaks can be rapidly thawed in as few as 11 min without affecting texture or cooking yield, while reducing thaw drip loss. Thus, rapid thawing may enhance the apparent juiciness of steaks for consumers and provide an effective method for maintaining consistent control of experimental conditions for researchers.
本研究旨在确定在水浴中快速解冻牛肉排对肉质的影响。将 24 块冷冻牛里脊肉带（strip loins）从肋骨末端依次切割成牛排，并根据里脊的解剖位置（前部、中部、后部）进行标记。在每个位置内，将牛排随机分配到常规（C；18-20 小时，4°C）或快速解冻方法中。快速解冻方法包括快速（20 分钟，20°C）或非常快速（11 分钟，39°C），在循环水浴中进行。记录每块牛排的物理特性、解冻、烹饪、颜色和质地特性。数据采用随机完整块设计进行分析，以解冻处理×3 个位置的因子分析，以里脊为块。未检测到测量变量的位置与解冻方法之间的相互作用（P＞0.05）。与 C 牛排相比，快速解冻的牛排具有较低的解冻滴水损失（P＜0.001）和较高的 a值（P＜0.001）。解冻处理不影响 L、b*、烹饪产量或剪切力。后端的牛排具有较高的表面积与体积比（P＜0.001），这可能导致较高的解冻损失（P＜0.01）、较长的烹饪时间（P＜0.001）、较低的烹饪产量（P＜0.001）和较高的剪切力（P＜0.02），与里脊的前部和中部的牛排相比。这些数据表明，根据食品安全指南，整个里脊的牛排可以在水浴中快速解冻，对肉质的影响最小。实际应用：冷冻速率和冷冻储存对肉质的影响已有详细记录；然而，关于食品安全指南内快速解冻对肉质的影响信息相对较少。本研究表明，牛里脊肉排可以在短短 11 分钟内快速解冻，而不会影响质地或烹饪产量，同时减少解冻滴水损失。因此，快速解冻可能会提高牛排对消费者的明显多汁性，并为研究人员提供一种有效的方法，以保持实验条件的一致控制。
