Animal meat includes muscle tissue, ligaments, fats and bones. Muscle and fatty parts have the greatest nutritional properties. Muscles are rich in protein. More meat is obtained from adult animals. The back of the carcass predominates in the number of muscle fibers. Pork is the most popular meat among the population of Russia. Before cooking should be mechanical and culinary processing of meat.
Mechanical restoration
At the enterprise, meat is processed in a special workshop. The carcass of an animal is delivered chilled or frozen. Depends on the distance to the place where the slaughter took place.
Mechanical and culinary processing of meat - thawing, washing, drying and cooking. If the carcass arrived in chilled form, then the defrosting process is skipped.
In frozen form, meat juice is contained between the fibers in the form of snow crystals. With proper thawing, moisture flows back into the muscle fibers. Use several methods for thawing meat:
- Slow defrosting occurs at temperatures from 0 to 8 ° C. Air humidity is maintained in the range of 90–95%. The meat should be chopped into large pieces and hung on special hooks to prevent contact between pieces and other surfaces. The advantage of this method is that the juice is actively absorbed by the muscles, and the taste properties do not deteriorate. The larger the piece, the longer the defrost. Sometimes the process reaches 3 days.
- Rapid thawing occurs at a temperature of 20-25 ° C. The meat is thawed during the day. With this method, the pieces are laid on wooden flooring. To avoid juice loss, the meat is kept at a temperature of + 2 ° C during the day. It is impossible to cut frozen meat into small pieces, because the taste will change.
It is forbidden to thaw in water due to loss of nutrients.
At enterprises, carcass pieces are washed under running water. In this case, spores and microorganisms are removed. In small enterprises, this procedure is carried out in the bath. At the last stage, rinse the meat with cool water and send for drying.
Drying is necessary to prevent the development of microorganisms. Pieces are placed on gratings or suspended from the ceiling. Dried meat is easier and more convenient to cut. To speed up the process, you can pump air at a temperature of 1-6 ° C or use napkins.
Culinary cutting of beef carcass
Disassembled pieces of meat are used for cooking. Each species requires a specific department of the animal. The technological process of mechanical and culinary processing of meat includes parsing into cuts, separation of meat from bone, removal of tendons and cartilage.
The temperature in the room should be below 10 ° C. First of all, the carcass is separated into the front and rear halves. The front part is cut in half along the spine. Beef is divided into the following parts:
- scapula;
- neck;
- dorsal part;
- edge;
- brisket;
- tenderloin;
- the hip part;
- lumbar
- subscapular.
The forequarter is cut into the scapula, neck and dorsal part. A tenderloin is cut from the back so as not to damage during further meat cutting. Further, they are divided into the lumbar and hip part.
Beef Boning
The mechanical, culinary processing of beef or pork meat involves boning - the separation of meat from bone. This procedure is carefully considered. There should be no deep incisions on the pieces, the bone remains as clean as possible.
Processing cut pieces, remove tendons, cartilage, film on the surface. Portion pieces are cut from the finished muscle mass for further culinary processing.
When boning, tendons and joints of the bones are cut. As a result of the mechanical culinary processing of meat and cutting of meat, the neck, shoulder blade, edge and brisket are obtained. From the back, a tenderloin, a thin edge, parts of the hind leg are obtained.
Depending on the category of meat, losses are allowed. For category I - no more than 26%, II - 29%.
Culinary use of beef
Ready meat is sent for processing. Depending on which part of the animal was cut, the application is determined. The smaller the connective tissue, the brighter the taste and the shorter the heat treatment. This semi-finished product is used for frying. With greater rigidity, cooking or stewing is preferable.
For the mechanical and culinary processing of meat, a brief list of body parts for cooking will help to list:
- Tenderloin is used for steaks and steaks. This is the most tender and delicious part of beef.
- Thick and thin edges are used for frying and stewing in large or small pieces.
- The upper part - when stewing large or frying in small pieces.
- The spatula is only boiled or stewed.
- The neck and hem are eaten boiled and chopped, as they contain more than 80% connective tissue.
Mutton cutting
The mechanical and culinary processing of lamb meat includes the separation of carcasses into the front and back parts, after removing the kidneys.
From the front part are obtained: scapula, brisket, neck and loin. The pulp of the neck is cut with one layer from each half. Tendons are removed, the film is not removed. The brisket and loin are cut so as to remove tendons and excessively coarse meat.
The back is cut like beef. Pieces of not more than 5 kilograms from the femoral part are removed as a whole. If the carcass turned out to be large, then the thigh is divided into several parts. Lamb does not have to separate connective tissue. Losses during deboning account for 28% of category I meat.
Ready meat is sent for cooking, depending on the part of the body:
- the back can be fried in large pieces;
- loin and scapula suitable for frying, pre-cut into small pieces;
- brisket eat fried chopped or boiled;
- mince is made from the neck.
Culinary cutting of pork carcass
The organization of the mechanical culinary processing of pork meat is different from the cutting of lamb and beef. The fact is that in addition to the meat part, pork has salted pork fat, which is also used in the preparation of semi-finished products.
Similar to the previous methods of cutting, the carcass is cut into the front and back. Cut out the shoulder blades, cut off the fat with a single layer. Next, remove the tenderloin, trying not to damage the meat with deep incisions. The carcass is cut into 2 halves along the spine, the brisket is separated.
For a full culinary processing, a pig will use a spatula, loin, brisket, ham. Boning meat is produced similarly to the processing of beef. Shins and skins are suitable for cooking jellies. Pork is considered soft meat, and processing losses are no more than 13%.
During the mechanical and culinary processing of meat and meat products, the pieces are sorted:
- loin is used for frying and baking in large pieces;
- the hip part is used for goulash and frying in portions;
- the neck and shoulder blade, due to the fat content, can be baked whole;
- chop the brisket into small pieces or make minced meat;
- trimming spend for cooking cutlets.
Production of meat semi-finished products
Mechanical culinary processing of meat is required to create semi-finished products. To cook meat products, use the following methods:
- pickling;
- shpigovanie;
- cutting;
- beating;
- breading.
Marinating is used to soften meat, giving it aroma and taste. To do this, prepare small pieces. Marinated veined parts for further processing or soft parts for the preparation of barbecue, meat for baking.
Shpigovanie - adding fat to the pulp. Gives the piece a juiciness during frying or baking.
Breading is used for small pieces. This allows you to preserve the juiciness inside the product, creates a crisp. Consumers do not need to cook their own meat for frying.
Beating gives the steak a special softness, allows you to even the thickness of the piece. Beat off with a special chopper.
Slicing is required for goulash. Cut across the fibers or at an angle. Thus, the pieces have a beautiful shape and are not deformed during cooking.
Processing methods
Mechanical, culinary processing of meat of beef, lamb and pork is used to prepare a variety of dishes. They contain a large amount of protein. Meat products go well with vegetables and cereals. For a change use sauces that give the dish a special softness and aroma. The following cooking methods are distinguished:
- cooking;
- allowance;
- frying;
- quenching;
- baking.
In order to prevent mistakes when cooking meat, you need to know which piece was purchased and where it is better to use it.
Cooking
The organization of the mechanical and culinary processing of meat includes the preparation of the product.
The meat of large animals is boiled in a small amount of water. 1.5 liters of water are taken per 1 kg of weight. For taste and aroma, salt and spices are added: bay leaf, celery. Boiled at a temperature of 90-95 ° C until cooked.
Cooking time depends on the type of meat, fiber content and size. A small piece of pork will cook faster than beef, at the end of cooking it should be soft and chew well. The broth is used for making sauces and cooking vegetables.
To determine if the meat is cooked, you need to stick a toothpick. For a cooked product, the sharp end will enter freely. If you still need to cook, the toothpick will go in hard. After boiling the brisket, the ribs are immediately removed. They should be well off.
Frying
When frying large pieces, you must first roll them in salt and spices. Pour oil up to 1.5 cm into a heated pan, put a piece of meat. Fried on one side until golden brown. After that, turn over to the other side. Larger pieces are recommended to be cooked in the oven. To keep the meat juicy, in the process of cooking it is poured with the fat in which it is fried every 15 minutes.
For cooking in the oven choose a loin, brisket or shoulder blade. You can pre-make incisions, add lard. Thus, the steak will become juicy.
Small pieces are fried on the stove in a small amount of vegetable oil. After the appearance of the crust on one side, they are turned over to the other side. After the meat is browned on all sides, reduce the cooking temperature. The finished dish is easy to chew.
Previously, pieces can be rolled in a breading mixture for a crisp.
Quenching
To extinguish using any part of the carcass. Pieces can reach up to 1.5 kg. Cooking time will depend on the size of the pieces. To add flavor, add spices. The meat will become softer if you add wine, beer or apple cider vinegar during the cooking process. Cooking, you can experiment. Berries or an apple will add a refined taste and speed up cooking.
Small pieces are cut into 20-30 grams. Add spices and some water. Stew until tender. You can add alcohol to add flavor. Cooking time is reduced to 40-60 minutes.
Roasting
You can bake meat in the oven, after boiling or stewing. This will reduce cooking time. No oil is added during cooking. You can bake in whole or in small portions.