EFFECT OF ULTRASONIC RADIATION ON SOME PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF BROILER BREAST MUSCLE AND COOKED MEAT

A study was conducted to determine the effect of ultrasonic radiation on the muscle fibers of broiler breast muscle and the objective texture of the cooked meat. Seventy commercially processed broiler carcasses were subjected to either a 15-min water control or ultrasonic bath (40 kHz at 2,400-W power input). Carcasses were then bagged and placed in a 2 C cooling chamber until 2-h post-mortem (PM) at which time both pectoralis major muscles were excised and weighed. At 24 h PM the muscles were heated for 30 min at 85 C, then cooled for 30 min. The meat and the resulting fluids lost during heating were weighed; two 1.27-cm wide strips were removed from each breast, and analyzed for shear values. Samples for histological evaluation were taken at both 2 and 24 h PM and showed no treatment differences. The effect of ultrasonic radiation on carcass temperature was analyzed; untreated carcasses were found to be 3 C lower than treated carcasses. There were no treatment differences in fluids lost, but shear values of the ultrasound-treated meat were significantly less (P < .05) than the shear values of the water control: 4.4 and 5.0 kg, respectively.