Effects of hybrid (ultrasound, ohmic and infrared) treatments on the quality characteristics of meat

In this study, effect of hybrid cooking system which is the consecutive application of ultrasound (10, 20 and 30 min.), ohmic (40, 55 and 70 V) and infrared treatments (325, 375 and 425 °F) on quality characteristics of meat were investigated. Hybrid cooking system was also compared with ohmic cooking alone, infrared cooking alone, ultrasound – ohmic, ohmic – infrared treatments. The effect of system variables on moisture content, pH, color, texture, thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS), total aerobic mesophilic bacteria (TAMB) and total coliform (TC) counts, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) values of beef samples were examined. The lowest moisture content values (51.01 - 53.15 %) of beef samples were obtained in the hybrid cooking. pH values of cooked samples were significantly different (P˂0.05) than raw beef. Color values (L*, a*, b*, H and S) of beef in the hybrid cooking were desirable by the consumer in terms of providing a fried shell appearance. Hybrid cooking caused a significant effect (P<0.05) on hardness, gumminess and resiliences of beef, however springiness, cohesiveness and chewiness values were not changed significantly (P˃0.05). Higher voltage values and higher temperatures caused a significant increase (P<0.05) in TBARS values. Hybrid cooking provided the best results in terms of inhibition of TAMB and TC counts. Cooking treatments used in this study can be considered as safe about PAH content due to lower PAH levels than European Commission (EC) limits. The results of study showed that hybrid cooking is a safe and advantegous method to cook beef in terms of good quality attributes.