EFFECT OF TUMBLING METHOD, PHOSPHATE LEVEL AND FINAL COOK TEMPERATURE ON HISTOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF TUMBLED PORCINE MUSCLE TISSUE

Six groups of hams were cured, tumbled, canned and cooked. Duplicate histological samples were removed from both the surface and deep muscles of fresh, cured and cooked hams, prepared and stained both with haematoxylin and trichrome staining solutions. Results indicated that tumbling significantly (P < 0.01) increased cell membrane disruption, and phosphate level had a significant (P < 0.01) quadratic effect on decreasing clarity of striation patterns. On a tumbling time constant basis, intermittent tumbling resulted in more alterations in cell structure than did continuous tumbling. Tumbling also had a significant (P < 0.01) effect on disorganizing nuclei as well as a significant (P < 0.05) effect on decreasing clarity of striation patterns of deep muscle samples.