Effect of Tumbling and Tumbling Temperature on Total Aerobic Plate Counts (Incubated at 25°C) and Quality of Boneless, Cured Hams

The effects of intermittent tumbling (up to 18 hr) and processing temperature (25°C or 3°C) on internal temperature and exudate total aerobic plate counts incubated at 25°C (ATPC) in boneless, cured hams were determined. The design used 80 hams in five replicates involving four treatment groups (tumbled at 25°C tumbled at 0°C, control held at 25°C and control held at 0°C). The significant (P < 0.01) tumbling effect on the rise in internal ham temperature occurred after 3 hr, but only accounted for a difference of 1.26°C‐1.32°C, independent of processing temperature. While tumbling significantly improved the cooked yield by 3.45%, processing at 25°C rather than at 0°C resulted in a significant (P<0.05) yield reduction of 2.15% after 9 hr of processing. The exudate ATPC was significantly (P<0.01) reduced after 18 hr of tumbling.