Influence of stewing time on the texture, ultrastructure and in vitro digestibility of meat from the yellow-feathered chicken breed

Abstract

This study assessed the influence of stewing (1, 2 or 3 h) on the texture, ultrastructure and in vitro digestibility of meat from the yellow-feathered chicken, which is a popular broiler chicken in Asia. Results indicated that longer stewing considerably increased cooking loss of the chicken carcass and tenderness of thigh meat. After 3 h of stewing, protein digestibility decreased from 90.5% to 80.3% and fiber diameter decreased by 8.63 μm. The shear force value of breast meat decreased from 32.34 N at 1 h to 10.29 N at 2 h, and then increased to 39.98 N at 3 h. The texture profile of breast meat remarkably decreased during stewing. Moreover, increased stewing time induced longitudinal and transversal shrinkage of muscle fibers and the degradation of the myosin heavy chain. These findings suggested that prolonged stewing (3 h) resulted in decreased meat qualities, based on the changes in cooking loss, digestibility and texture profile, but that stewing for 2 h increased thigh and breast tenderness. Producers could utilize this information to stew yellow-feathered chicken meat with desirable qualities.