Ultrasound application and its effect on quality attributes of marinated goat meat

A study was carried out to evaluate the effect of ultrasound application on the physicochemical and sensory characteristics of marinated goat meat. Chunks of semimembranosus muscle were immersed in the marinade and ultrasonicated in an ultrasound bath (280 W, 37 kHz) for 15 (T1), 30 (T2), 45 (T3) and 60 (T4) min. These treated and control samples (without ultrasound application) were kept for 24 h under refrigeration (4±2°C) for marination. Ultrasound-assisted marination had no significant effect on the pH of both raw and cooked meat. Marinade pick up (%) was significantly (P<0.05) higher in T1, T2, T3 and T4 (2.42±0.04, 3.01±0.02, 5.24±0.05 and 5.60±0.023) compared to control (1.96±0.02).Cooking yield (%) was significantly (P<0.05) higher in T1 (64.80±0.20) compared to T2 (63.02±0.18), T3 (62.95±0.21) and T4 (62.96±0.17). Shear force value (kg) was significantly (P<0.05) lower in T1, T2, T3 and T4 (0.842±0.04, 0.744±0.01, 0.623±0.08, 0.637±0.05) compared to control (1.897±0.03). Flavour and tenderness scores were highest in T2 (4.71±0.03 and 4.71±0.04) among all samples. Thus, ultrasound-assisted marination for 30 min (T2) was observed to improve the flavour and tenderness of goat meat.