TITLE:
Preparation and Quality Evaluation of Extended Beef Rounds Containing Gum Arabic from Acacia senegal var. kerensis
AUTHORS:
Johnson K. Mwove, Lilian A. Gogo, Ben N. Chikamai, Mary N. Omwamba, Symon M. Mahungu
KEYWORDS:
Gum Arabic, Expressible Moisture, Extended Beef Rounds, Curing Brine Injection
JOURNAL NAME:
Food and Nutrition Sciences,
Vol.7 No.11,
September
22,
2016
ABSTRACT: It was of interest to determine the water holding effect of the gum from the Acacia
senegal var. kerensis in extended beef rounds. Beef rounds injected at two injection
levels (30% and 35% over green weight) with curing brines containing gum arabic at
1%, 1.5%, 2.0%, 2.5% and 3.0% of the final product were investigated. A non-injected
sample and a product injected with soy protein concentrate (SPC) at 3.5% of the final
product weight were prepared for comparison. Mean results indicated that the
level of gum arabic from Acacia senegal var. kerensis used in curing brines significantly
increased the cook yield and reduced the extractable moisture in cooked
extended beef rounds. The injection of beef with curing brine also significantly increased
the cook yield and the extractable moisture of the extended beef rounds as
compared to the non-injected beef samples. Both injection and gum levels had a significant
effect on the proximate composition and sensory properties of the resulting
beef rounds. Sensory analysis revealed that samples containing gum arabic at 2.5%
were juicier and comparable to those containing SPC at 3.5% injection level. Furthermore,
these samples had the highest overall preference comparable to samples
injected with curing brines containing SPC. This is the first report on the physicochemical
properties of extended beef rounds containing gum arabic from Acacia senegal
var. kerensis.