Tenderizing

In cooking, tenderizing is breaking down collagens in meat to make it more palatable.

There are a number of ways to tenderize meat:

Mechanical tenderization, such as pounding,^[1] piercing,^[1] or even explosives.^[2]
The tenderization that occurs through cooking, such as braising.^[3]
Tenderizers in the form of naturally occurring enzymes, which can be added to food before cooking.^[1]
- Examples of enzymes used for tenderizing: papain from papaya,^[3] bromelain from pineapple and actinidin from kiwifruit.
Marinating the meat with vinegar, wine, lemon juice, buttermilk or yogurt.^[1]
Brining the meat in a salt solution (brine).^[1]
Dry aging of meat at 0 to 2 °C (32 to 36 °F).^[3]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e McGee, Harold (2004). ON FOOD AND COOKING, The science and lore of the kitchen. Scribner. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-684-80001-1.
^ Solomon, Morse B.; Berry, Bradford W. (June 1998). "Hydrodyne: Exploding Meat Tenderness" (PDF). Agricultural Research (U.S. Department of Agriculture). Retrieved 5 June 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c LAROUSSE Gastronomique. Hamlyn. 2000. p. 1204. ISBN 0-600-60235-4.