Hydrolytic and oxidative changes in the lipids of chicken breast and thigh muscles during refrigerated storage

The changes in free fatty acid (FFA) amount and composition and in Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were simultaneously determined in chicken breast and thigh muscles at intervals between 1 and 14 d of storage at 4 degrees C (1, 3, 7, 10, 14). The rates of lipid hydrolysis were fast in the first 3 d and then slowed until day 14; phospholipids showed the same pattern but hydrolysis of triacylglycerols was linear at least in thigh muscles. Oxidation increased linearly during storage. Thigh muscles contained 3 times more FFAs than breast muscles and 2 to 4 times less TBARS suggesting that lipolysis did not favor lipid oxidation although both increased concomitantly.