4.1:

Meat

• Identify the grades of meat
• Identify the primary cuts of meat
• Describe factors that go into purchasing meat
• Analyze the best ways to cook and prepare meat

Meat

• Beef
• Veal
• Lamb

▫ Young sheep

• Mutton

▫ Older sheep

• Pork

Meat Inspection

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Meat inspection is mandatory

in the United States:

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• The Food Safety & Inspection Service
• (Division of USDA)

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• Ensures that meat is wholesome

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• Processing facilities and equipment meet food safety standards.

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• Stamp signifies wholesomeness & safe to eat

Grades of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

Only meat products approved for wholesomeness may be graded. Grading is voluntary.

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• Grading refers to the meat’s quality. The quality of meat is based primarily on its overall flavor characteristics and tenderness.

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• 2 Grading Systems

▫ Quality grade

▫ Yield grade

Grades of Meat

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Quality grade:

▫ Measures the flavor characteristics of meat products.

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▫ The USDA evaluates meat for traits that indicate its tenderness, juiciness, and flavor.

• Prime
• Choice
• Select
• Good (only used for veal and lamb)

Grades of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

Lower grades for beef:

Standard, commercial, utility, cutter, & canner

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Lower grades for lamb:

Utility & cull

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Lower grades for veal:

Standard & utility

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• Lower grades used for ground beef & other processed products
• Use lowest grades for canning

Grades of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Yield grade:

▫ Measures the proportion of edible or usable meat after it has been trimmed of bones or fat.

• Differences in the fat amount on the outside of the

meat can cause the yield of usable product to vary

Cuts of Meat

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Before a cooking method can be chosen, a chef must understand:

▫ various cuts of meat

▫ physical composition of the muscle tissue & how it is affected by heat.

Cuts of Meat

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Muscle tissue:

▫ 75% water

▫ 20% protein

▫ 5% fat

▫ Made of muscle fibers bound together and surrounded by connective tissue.

• Connective tissue increases as the animal ages & amount animal exercises
• This tissue makes the meat tougher but also more flavorful.

Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Connective tissues: Collagen & Elastin

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▫ Collagen

• Breaks down during long, slow, moist-heat cooking methods

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▫ Elastin

• Connects meat to the bone
• Will not break down during cooking
• Trim away by hand before cooking

Cuts of Meat

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Most tender cuts:

▫ Come from muscle groups with the least amount of exercise

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▫ More marbling built up between muscle fibers

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▫ Examples:

• Tenderloins, roasts

Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Before a cut of meat becomes available for purchase by an operation…

▫ After harvesting (slaughtering), the processor cuts the whole carcass into large sections.

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• Butchered for beef: 4 sections

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• Veal (Cattle age of 1 day to 14-15 weeks): 2 halves

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• Hogs: 2 halves (no other type of meat can be handled in the facility)

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• Lamb or Mutton: Cut directly into primal cuts (upcoming slide)

Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

▫ After initial cuts:

• Meat must be aged between 48 and 72 hours to allow the muscles to relax.
• Hang the meat during “aging” to lengthen

muscle fibers and increase tenderness

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• As meat ages:
• Color darkens
• Flavor improves
• More expensive

▫ Loses moisture that reduces its yield

Cuts of Meat

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

▫ At the end of the aging period, the butcher

cuts the carcass into primal cuts.

• Primary divisions of meat produced by the initial

butchering of animal carcasses

Beef

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^6.1 Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

Veal

Pork

Lamb

Cuts of Meat

6.1

• After the butcher makes primal cuts, fabrication can take place.

▫ The process of butchering primal cuts into usable portions.

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Retail cuts of meat are those cuts that are ready for sale.

▫ Can be primal or fabricated portions

• Foodservice purchasers can purchase retail cuts that are primal cuts, and then fabricate them for their own use or buy fabricated portions.

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• More butchering = Higher prices

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• Fabricating primal cuts will save money

Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Fabricators make cuts from the boneless loin or tenderloin of

beef, veal, lamb, or pork into a variety of menu cuts.

▫ Medallions

• Small, round pieces molded by wrapping in cheesecloth

▫ Noisettes (nwah-ZET)

• Small, round portion of meat (French word for hazelnut)
• Interchangeable with medallion

▫ Scallops

• Thin, boneless cuts lightly pounded
• “Scallopini”

▫ Emince’ (eh-manss-AY)

• Thin strips of meat for sauteing

Other Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Offal meat:

▫ Organ meat from hogs, cattle, or sheep.

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▫ Though no longer popular in the United States, offal meat is still enjoyed in other regions of the world.

Types of OFFAL MEATS

• Sweetbreads

▫ thymus glands

• Liver
• Kidney
• Tripe

▫ Muscular stomach lining

• Heart
• Brain

Other Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Kosher meat:

▫ Slaughtered to comply with Jewish dietary laws.

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▫ In the US, only beef/veal forequarters, poultry, and some game are used

Other Cuts of Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Game meat:

▫ Meat from animals that are not typically raised domestically.

• Deer
• Wild Boar
• Moose
• Elk

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▫ Can be farm-raised:

Purchasing Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Consider the following general guidelines when purchasing meat:

▫ Cost:

• Fabrication is a way to reduce meat costs.

▫ Freshness:

• Often, high-quality frozen meats do not appear that different from fresh- meat products.

▫ Fat Content:

• The fat content of meat products often influences the cooking method used.
• Consider marbling & fat cap

▫ Equipment:

• Consider the types of equipment an operation has before deciding what

types of meat products to purchase.

▫ Vendors:

• It is always a good idea for an operation to shop around to ensure getting the best price for its needs.

Storing Meat

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• After inspecting all meat products…

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▫ Store in coldest part of the cooler or in its own unit

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▫ Hold fresh meat at 41°F or lower

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▫ Frozen meats kept frozen

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▫ If in the same storage as ready-to-eat food, store meat

BELOW the ready-to-eat food

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▫ Follow FIFO

Determining Doneness

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Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Food preparers can cook beef, lamb, and some game meat to a

wide range of doneness.

• Example:

▫ A beef roast is rare when the internal temperature is 130°F. The meat appears red inside with a thin layer of brown on the outside.

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▫ At an internal temperature of 145°F, the roast is medium. The meat is pink inside with a well-browned surface. The surface of meat cooked to medium is firmer than rare meat.

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▫ Well-done meat is completely cooked, leaving little or no juice. The cooked surface of the meat is firm and dry, and the internal temperature is 160°F.

• In general, as meat cooks, the exterior should develop a deep brown color.

Determining Doneness

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood

• Consider carry-over cooking:

▫ Heat absorbed during the cooking process that continues to cook the meat after it is removed from its heat source.

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• Example:
• Top round of beef may increase 15° after being taken out of the oven.
• May want to take meat out before it just reaches desired

temperature

Section 6.1 Summary

• The two grades of meat are quality grade and yield grade.
• A number of butchering processes take place:

▫ Primal cuts are the primary divisions of meat produced by the initial butchering of animal carcasses.

▫ Fabrication is the process of butchering primal cuts into usable portions.

• Meat must be purchased from plants inspected by the USDA or a state department of agriculture.
• Before a chef can determine the right cooking method for a cut of meat, he or she must understand the physical composition of the muscle tissue and how it is affected by heat.

6.1

Chapter 6 | Meat, Poultry, and Seafood