Effects of cooking method, reheating, holding time, and holding temperature on beef longissimus lumborum and biceps femoris tenderness

Effects of cooking method, holding temperature, holding time, and reheating on Warner-Bratzler peak shear force (WBPSF); Warner-Bratzler myofibrillar force (WBM-F), Warner-Bratzler connective tissue force (WBC-F) and cooking loss were investigated. Two muscles (longissimus lumborum and biceps femoris) from USDA Choice beef carcasses were used. Water-bath cooking resulted in higher WBPSF, WBM-F, and WBC-F than belt-grill cooking for longissimus lumborum. The biceps femoris muscle tenderness improved more with holding time after cooking on a belt than the longissimus lumborum due to its higher collagen content. Cooking biceps femoris steaks to 54 °C by a belt grill and holding them at 57 °C in a water bath for 15 min and subsequent reheating to 70 °C (best treatment combination) produced a 25% reduction in WBPSF, a 37% reduction in WBC-F, and a 12% reduction in WBM-F as compared to the control (cooking steaks directly to 70 °C without holding). Water-bath cooking resulted in lower WBPSF than belt-grill cooking for biceps femoris without any holding time, but further tenderization did not occur with holding. Water-bath cooking resulted in higher cooking losses than belt-grill cooking for both muscles.