Haley Pollock

Diana Li
NUSC 3234
11/30/16

Meat, Poultry, & Fish

Introduction: Meat is essential in most diets and provide high quality protein that is high in
B12, essential amino acids, iron, and other nutrients not found in abundance in other food
sources. Poultry are also high quality protein foods that are usually leaner and contain less fat
compared to most meats. Fish especially fatty fish like salmon contain essential omega 3 fatty
acids that cannot be made in the body and thus must be obtained from the diet. Fish are another
high quality protein food that have been deemed more heart healthy in the last few decades
compared to red meat. Overall meat, poultry, and fish are usually the featured food group in a
dish and other foods like vegetables, legumes, dairy, and grains are added to compliment the type
of meat and how the meat is prepared. The cut and type of meat source adds a lot of variation in
how an animal protein is cooked and to the final product. A grilled sirloin steak is prepared a lot
differently than a poached haddock filet, thus the flavors, mouthfeel, and textures of each of
these protein sources are very different in the final outcome. These differences also set the stage
for side dishes that complement the protein source. Where a grilled steak may be paired well
with a baked potato and corn on the cob, these side dishes would not pair well with a poached
haddock filet for example. In this lab, various types of meat, poultry, and fish were cooked using
both wet and dry methods to observe the most suitable cooking techniques for each type of
protein source, all while keeping in mind where the cut of meat came from on an animal. Cuts
from a more worked muscle will generally be tougher whereas less worked muscle cuts will be
tenderer. However, there are also chemical and mechanical methods to tenderize meats that may
be on the tougher side.

Methods: Fatty fish (salmon) and lean fish (cod) were cooked three different ways. The first
method was broiling. The fish fillets were seasoned and placed on an oiled tin foil lined baking
dish skin side down. The fish was placed in a salamander about 2-4 inches from the heart and
cooked for 5-8 minutes or until the fish reached 145 degrees F. Then the fish were baked in a 350
degree F oven after being seasoned and placed on an oiled tin foil lined baking dish for about 1520 minutes or until the fish reached 145 degrees F. Finally a saucepan was filled with water and
brought to a slow boil and then simmer. The fish was placed into the poaching liquid and allowed
to cook for 6 minutes or until the fish reached 145 degrees F. All fish was presented on a serving
plate.
Results:
Please see attached lab journal.
Discussion: In exercise two various cooking methods were observed. The most tender and juicy
meat was cooked by the broiling method, while the least tender and juicy meat was cooked in the
microwave. Broiling meat is direct and dry heat much like grilling for example. This type of
cooking sears the outside of the meat which creates a barrier of tough denatured proteins which
locks in moisture and adds flavor via maillard browning on the outside of the seared meat. (1)
Microwaving on the other hand is a very different cooking method for meat and extremely
unfavorable. Microwaving cooks food from the inside out thus more moisture is pushed out of
the piece of meat than kept inside the meat. (2) This makes meat very dry after cooking, has an
unattractive grey appearance, little flavor, and overall not a cooking method that is acceptable
in most cases. The other dry cooking techniques including roasting and pan frying had a nice
dark brown outer appearance and was also considerably moist and tender. These methods works
about the same way as broiling except less intense thus moisture and tenderness of the meat was
upheld. Although pressure cooking can increase tenderness of meat considerably it did not in this
case. This may be because the meat was overcooked in the pressure cooker since there was only

a small amount of meat being cooked. Also already tender cuts of meat are not benefited as much
in a pressure cooker as a tougher cut of meat. Thus, its not advantageous to cook tender cuts of
meat in a pressure cooker.
In exercise three mechanical and chemical tenderizing methods were experimented with.
Mechanical tenderizing works by breaking up the tough connective tissue in the meat and
breaking down some of the meat fibers which hold the meat together and make it tougher. (3) On
the other hand, chemical tenderizing uses chemical enzymes such as bromelain from pineapple to
tenderize meat. (3) These enzymes are called proteases which break down meat via chemical
reactions and also break down collagen which gives meat its shape. (3) Bromelain works by
separating amino acids and breaking peptide bonds which link amino acids together to create
very large muscles/tissues such as protein, collagen, and meat. (4) Chemical meat tenderizers can
be used by adding fresh fruit like pineapple to a marinade or in a concentrated solid shaker that is
shelf stable. In our experiment the meats which were pounded were more juicy and tender.
Specifically the meat pounded with flour was extra juicy most likely because of the added gluten
from the flour on the exterior of the meat. This flour helps to lock moisture into the meat and
create an extra barrier through the gluten on the exterior of the meat. The scored and controlled
group was chewier and less juicy, which shows the mechanical tenderizing is a valid method of
tenderizing meat. The chemical tenderizing methods that were used included a dry tenderizing
rub which contained powdered bromelain and salt. This meat tasted the best and was also fairly
tender and juicy after cooked. The fresh pineapple and the canned pineapple both worked to
tenderize and lock in moisture into the meat as well as adding some extra sweetness to the meat
which enhanced caramelization in the cooking process.
In exercise four chicken was cooked in various ways and tenderness/juiciness was
observed. The broiled chicken was the juiciest much like what was observed in exercise two. The

microwaved chicken was inedible and as hard as a rock. The fried and oven-fried chicken was
less juicy. The fried chicken was tenderer than the oven-fried chicken. The thighs had much more
flavor and were much more tender/juicy compared to the white meat. This is because thighs are
dark meat and contain a higher fat content compared to white meat. The tofu that was oven-fried
had the best texture and was the least moist out of all the tofus. This may be because it was
allowed to cook for the longest time in the oven so more moisture was released from his tofu
compared to the other cooking methods that were much faster and more intense.
In exercise five fatty fish and lean fish were cooked using various methods. The fatty fish
tasted best broiled while the lean fish tasted best poached. The fatty fish during poaching had
little brown color and although it was tender, it would not be the preferred method to cook this
type of fish. Fatty fish are already fairly moist so using another moist cooking technique to cook
this type of fish is not beneficial. (5) On the other hand, lean fish is not as moist since there is
less fat in this fish, thus a wet cooking method is more suitable for this type of fish. (5) Both fish
were acceptable when baked in the oven, color was able to develop on both along with the
broiling method which developed some caramelization which was desired. However, the lean
fish was easily cooked in the broiler and came out a bit overcooked because the broiler is so
powerful. If this method is used to cook thin, lean fish extra precaution must be taken to make
sure the fish does not get overcooked, as this is very easy to do.
In the final exercise peeled and un-peeled shrimp was cooked. The un-peeled shrimp had
a more tender texture and the shrimp flavor was more up-front compared to the peeled shrimp.
The un-peeled shrimp had a smaller % weight loss which most likely means more moisture was
maintained in the un-peeled shrimp. Although un-peeled is less desirable because it is harder to
eat, its important to note that this type of preparation confers more flavor and better texture
compared to the peeled shrimp. This makes sense because peeled shrimp has no barrier during

the cooking process while the un-peeled shrimp has a protective coating (the shell) which helps
to lock in moisture and shrimp flavor.
Overall, there are many types of meat along with many cuts of various meats. To
complicate the process even further there are numerous cooking techniques that can be used to
prepare meat, poultry, and fish. To be successful in the kitchen and to prepare meat in an
honorable and fulfilling way, knowing a few important cooking methods and keeping in mind
where the cut of meat comes from on an animal will help a cook determine which cooking
technique suits that type of cut the best. More worked parts of an animal will have a tougher
texture, thus a wet cooking technique that cooks the meat low and slow is best because it helps
break down the collagen which is holding the meat together so tightly. Tenderizers are also
important to use with tougher cuts of meat because they help to break down the collagen even
further. On the other hand, tender cuts of meat should be cooked using a dry method and should
be served with some caramelization on the exterior of the meat. This seared exterior helps to lock
in moisture and flavor within the tender cut of meat.

References:
1. Rogers, Patricia. "STANDARDIZATION OF METHODS OF HEATING AND
SAMPLING MEAT." Meatscience. VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC Institute. Web. 26 Nov.
2016. <http://www.meatscience.org/docs/default-source/publicationsresources/rmc/1969/standardization-of-methods-of-heating-and-sampling-meat.pdf?
sfvrsn=2>.
2. Woodford, Chris. "Microwave Ovens | How Do They Work?" Explain That Stuff. 26 May
2016. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <http://www.explainthatstuff.com/microwaveovens.html>.
3. Matsumoto, Marc. "Learn Three Techniques for Tenderizing Meat." PBS. PBS, 05 June
2012. Web. 26 Nov. 2016. <http://www.pbs.org/food/fresh-tastes/tenderizing-meat/>.

4. Titz, Tobias. "Bromelain: Enemy of Proteins Everywhere." How Stuff Works. Web. 26
Nov 2016. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/pineappleenzyme-tenderize-steak1.htm/>.
5. "How to Poach Fish including Cooking times and Oven or Kettle Methods." How to
Poach Fish. Web. 26 Nov. 2016.