TORONTO — Spraying hot water on beef trimmings for 40 seconds has proven to be another way to get rid of dangerous bacteria such as E. coli 0157:H7.
Alberta Agriculture meat scientists wondered what the treatment, known as pasteurization, does to the taste and smell of ground beef.
Carcasses have smooth surfaces and are subjected to various treatments such as hot water pasteurization, but once they are broken into pieces, there is a greater chance of bacteria hiding in hard to reach places such as cut surfaces and trim.
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“There is a quite a risk of contamination during the post slaughter handling,” said Zeb Pietraski, a meat scientist with Alberta Agriculture.
He and sensory scientist Nicole Gaudette explained what happens to the beef and its resulting quality after it is pasteurized during a Canadian Meat Council food safety symposium in Toronto Oct. 3.
The 85 C water was applied to different lots of varying red meat-to-fat ratios for 20, 40 and 60 seconds.
“A 40 second treatment was good enough to reduce the microbial counts without a negative effect on the quality of the product,” he said.
The next step was to follow up on eating quality.
Gaudette used a trained sensory panel of eight people to evaluate the odour and colour of the raw product.
Another 100 tasters tried and rated the cooked patties for overall acceptability, appearance, colour, flavour, juiciness, texture and after taste. No buns, condiments or seasoning were added to the patties.
Researchers found patties containing higher levels of fat did not bind together as well after treatment as a mixture of 85-15 percent.
Gaudette was concerned the meat could have a warmed over smell.
“Hot water treatment did not evoke any warmed over smell on the product,” she said.
There were some minor changes in colour. .
“If there is a difference, it is not affecting your level of acceptability.”
