Author(s)

Emanuele Calabrò, Salvatore Magazù

Department of Physics, University of Messina, Messina, Italy..

The effects of microwave energy and conventional convective heating on bovine meat were studied in the mid-infrared region by FTIR spectroscopy, to highlight the differences between the two cooking methods. Samples of 100 g of bovine breast meat were cooked using three treatments: heating in a conventional electric oven at the temperature of 165°C for 16 min, heating in a microwave oven at 800 W for 95 sec, and heating in the same microwave oven at 650 W for 160 sec. Significant decreases in intensity of vibration bands of CH2 methylene group at 1921 and 1853 cm-1 and of the carbonyl band at 1742 cm-1 were observed after microwave heating with respect to heating in a conventional oven, showing that Maillard reaction occurs partially using microwave oven. Spectral analysis in the amide I region after microwave cooking at 800 W for 95 sec showed that an increase in intensity occurred in the region from 1665 to 1690 cm-1 which can be attributed to β-turns, characteristic of disorder processes in the protein. Further analysis after microwave cooking at 650 W for 160 sec evidenced major increase in intensity of β-turns content and the appearance of significant increases of β-sheet component at 1635 cm-1 and 1695 cm-1 that can be attributed to aggregated β-sheets structures.

Convective heating; Microwave oven; FTIR spectroscopy; Amide I region; Bovine breast meat

E. Calabrò and S. Magazù, "Comparison Between Conventional Convective Heating and Microwave Heating: An FTIR Spectroscopy Study of the Effects of Microwave Oven Cooking of Bovine Breast Meat," Journal of Electromagnetic Analysis and Applications, Vol. 4 No. 11, 2012, pp. 433-439. doi: 10.4236/jemaa.2012.411060.