Quality of Dry-Cured Ham from Entire, Surgically and Immunocastrated Males: Case Study on Kraški Pršut

Abstract

Alternative solutions to the surgical castration of piglets need to be assessed because this is a particularly sensitive issue for the processing of traditional pork products. Currently, the available information about the advantages and drawbacks of castration for dry-cured products is limited; thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of Slovenian dry-cured ham (Kraški pršut) from entire males (EM), immunocastrates (IC) and surgical castrates (SC). Hams (12 per sex group) were processed for one year and physical-chemical, rheological and sensory analysis of the dry-cured hams was performed. With regard to processing aptitude, the main difference was in the subcutaneous fat thickness, which influenced the level of dehydration and salt intake. This was further reflected in the physical-chemical traits and the texture, which were measured instrumentally or assessed by panelists. Regarding the aforementioned traits, EM and IC were generally similar and different from SC. On the contrary, sensory profiling of odor, taste and flavor demonstrated that EM had the lowest overall sensory quality, different from both IC and SC, and presented odors and flavors described as sweat, manure, sharp and persistent. We confirmed that dry-curing did not eliminate the perception of boar taint in the product from EM. The IC were similar in many aspects to EM except for the odor, taste and flavor of dry-cured hams, in which case they were more similar to SC.

The Use of Pork from Entire Male and Immunocastrated Pigs for Meat Products—An Overview with Recommendations

“…Apart from skin and tissue damages and possible boar taint issues, using raw material from EM may result in a series of other issues as it is associated with a low amount of subcutaneous and intramuscular fat or poor water holding capacity [ 93 , 94 ]. These include higher processing loss (due to higher moisture loss), and losses due to tissue separation ( Figure 4 ) resulting in more tissue being trimmed during final product confectioning and deboning), higher intake of salt and a lower extent of proteolysis [ 95 , 96 , 97 ], a process that is to a certain extent also beneficial for appropriate texture and aroma development [ 98 ]. The resulting product exhibits higher sensorial hardness, saltiness and lower juiciness in addition to darker color and less intensive aroma [ 97 , 99 , 100 ].…”

“…These include higher processing loss (due to higher moisture loss), and losses due to tissue separation ( Figure 4 ) resulting in more tissue being trimmed during final product confectioning and deboning), higher intake of salt and a lower extent of proteolysis [ 95 , 96 , 97 ], a process that is to a certain extent also beneficial for appropriate texture and aroma development [ 98 ]. The resulting product exhibits higher sensorial hardness, saltiness and lower juiciness in addition to darker color and less intensive aroma [ 97 , 99 , 100 ]. In general, EM hams contain less protein and fat and more water than from gilts [ 101 ] therefore a decrease in the dry cured ham yield is considered in the following order: SC > gilts> EM.…”

“…In general, EM hams contain less protein and fat and more water than from gilts [ 101 ] therefore a decrease in the dry cured ham yield is considered in the following order: SC > gilts> EM. The differences in drying yield (prior to final ham trimming) between EM and SC ranged from 3.3% to 7% points [ 96 , 97 ]. Despite more unsaturated fat of EM hams [ 95 ], which is a prerequisite for higher oxidation [ 71 ], no differences in oxidative stability (either chemical, i.e., TBARS, or sensorial, i.e., rancidity) has been reported for either EM or IC dry-cured hams even after long-term maturation (up to 15 months) and with no antioxidative additives (like nitrites or ascorbates) applied [ 97 , 100 ].…”

“…As for producing dry-cured ham from IC, similarity to either EM or SC hams depends on the interval between vaccination and slaughter. In the case of the classical vaccination protocol (4–5 week delay), IC exhibit more similarity to EM than SC hams in terms of processing loss, chemical composition and texture, but with the absence of boar taint [ 97 ]. A longer V2-SL interval (i.e., 9 weeks, [ 100 ] enlarges the differences towards EM, improving the final product (lower processing loss, salt intake and sensorial hardness).…”

“…On the other hand, product desiccation during the processing increases the concentration of boar taint compounds [ 144 ]. Boar taint was thus evident in hams even after long processing times (i.e., 15 months) and indicated by either chemical determination of skatole and androstenone or by sensory evaluation by a panel trained in boar taint (i.e., higher incidence of sweat, fecal, persistent or off-flavor sensations [ 97 , 99 , 100 , 145 ]). Bañon et al [ 99 ] reported that boar taint in dry-cured hams was sensorially identifiable from 2.0 ppm of androstenone and 0.12 ppm.…”