The Effects of Postmortem Holding and Salt Addition on the Cooked Yield and Texture of Broiler Meat Patties

Meat was stripped from unchilled, uneviscerated broiler carcasses and separated by meat type – breast and leg (thigh and drumstick). Half of each meat type was ground and then mixed with 2% salt, and all meat was held either for 1.5 hr (room temperature) or for 4 or 24 hr (2 C) postmortem. Patties (90 g) from each meat type, with and without salt, were formed at each holding time and blast frozen at −34 C. Patties were oven cooked from the frozen state, then evaluated for cooked yield, moisture and fat content, and objective texture (texture profile analysis). Time ground meat was held postmortem had no significant effect on factors tested. Cooked yield was higher in patties from both meat types when salt was added. Patties containing salt were less hard, less cohesive, less chewy, and more springly than those without salt as measured by texture profile analysis. Patties from leg meat were less hard than those from breast meat probably because of the higher fat content of leg meat.