No abstract

The nutrient composition of Spring and Fall lambs were investigated. Seven retail cuts from carcasses of lambs raised under commercial conditions, and representing two age groups (4-4s mo and 8-P mo) were analyzed in both raw and cooked form. Separable lean meat was analyzed for proximate composition, 8 vitamins, 8 inorganic nutrients, cholesterol and 12 fatty acids. Except for moisture, total lipid, riboflavin, niacin, Zn and Fe, there were no practical differences in nutrients between cuts or age groups. Thiamin had the lowest cooking retention with a range of 29.0-63.5%.

Six groups of hams were cured, tumbled, canned and cooked. Duplicate histological samples were removed from both the surface and deep muscles of fresh, cured and cooked hams, prepared and stained both with haematoxylin and trichrome staining solutions. Results indicated that tumbling significantly (P < 0.01) increased cell membrane disruption, and phosphate level had a significant (P < 0.01) quadratic effect on decreasing clarity of striation patterns. On a tumbling time constant basis, intermittent tumbling resulted in more alterations in cell structure than did continuous tumbling. Tumbling also had a significant (P < 0.01) effect on disorganizing nuclei as well as a significant (P < 0.05) effect on decreasing clarity of striation patterns of deep muscle samples.