Quality Characteristics of Fresh and Cooked Ground Beef can be Improved by the Incorporation of Lean Finely‐Textured Beef (LFTB)

Abstract

Ground beef was formulated into six treatments of 82 or 93% lean with 0, 10, or 20% lean finely‐textured beef (LFTB). Batches (n = 5/treatment) were ground and formed into patties, then aerobically packaged for 5 days of simulated retail display to measure fresh color and lipid oxidation (TBARS). Additional patties were cooked to 71.1C before measuring external and internal cooked color, TBARS, and Lee‐Kramer shear force (LKSF). Lightness (L*), redness (a*), and pH of fresh patties increased (P < 0.05), whereas TBARS values were decreased (P < 0.05) on days 1, 2, and 4 of display, with increasing LFTB percentage. Cooking loss was lowest (P < 0.05) in 20% LFTB patties, whereas LKSF declined (P < 0.05) with increasing LFTB inclusion. Thus, LFTB incorporation up to 20% improved the quality of fresh ground beef patties and tenderness of cooked patties, without detrimentally impacting (P > 0.07) cooked color. Practical Applications Lean finely‐textured beef (LFTB) is a product made using an advanced meat recovery system from high‐fat, beef trimmings, and LFTB is treated with food‐grade ammonia to increase product pH and reduce potential pathogenic bacteria contamination. Even though LFTB has received considerable negative media coverage since 2012 (Yadavalli and Jones ), results of this research indicate that the inclusion of LFTB up to 20% could lend many positive quality characteristics to both fresh and cooked ground beef patties. Decreased lipid oxidation along with improved fresh color could result in a product with greater quality attributes, especially a more appealing color to consumers. With no negative effects on cooked color or cooking loss and the potential for increased tenderness, LFTB inclusion is a viable way to produce a desirable product while ensuring more complete utilization of beef carcasses.

Influence of Plant-Based Proteins on the Fresh and Cooked Characteristics of Ground Beef Patties

“…The instrumental cooked color evaluation of red to brown (630:580 nm) in ground beef patty formulations with the inclusion of plant-derived fibers was greater ( p < 0.01) for rice compared to the control suggesting that patties with the inclusion of the rice protein were redder after cooking. Previous research reported that there was no difference in internal cooked color for ground beef patties with varying lean-to-fat ratios [ 32 ]. These previous findings, along with the results from our laboratory oat protein study, suggest different lean-to-fat ratios along with varying percentages of vegetable-based proteins in the meat block could alter the internal cooked color of ground beef patties.…”

Quality of Plant-Based Ground Beef Alternatives in Comparison with Ground Beef of Various Fat Levels

“…The observed increased pH could be due to the inclusion of Lean Finely Textured Beef (LFTB) in the formulation of the products for retail sale. Through processing, the pH of LFTB is often increased above that of normal fresh beef and at inclusion, has been previously shown to increase the pH of the final blended GB (Van Laack et al, 1997;Moon et al, 2016).…”

Meat Substitution with Oat Protein Can Improve Ground Beef Patty Characteristics

“…It is apparent that the variation in fat quantity could be a contributing factor for internal color fluctuations reported within the current study. The evaluation of previous research [ 44 ] along with the current results suggest that ground beef patties with different lean-to-fat ratios and the inclusion of oat protein may cause variation of the internal cooked color of the ground beef patty.…”

“…Although the differences were numerically minimal for cooked instrumental color of meat proteins containing oat protein, these results do not agree with [ 37 ], which evaluated the internal cooked color of ground beef patties with varying lean to fat ratios. The previous study [ 44 ] reported that there was not a difference in internal cooked color ( p > 0.05) in ground beef patties. It is apparent that the variation in fat quantity could be a contributing factor for internal color fluctuations reported within the current study.…”