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Dried Plums in Underutilized Meat
JAMES M DEGEN CMC, CONSULTANT CALIFORNIA DRIED PLUM BOARD
Adding value to underutilized meat is an effective way to improve profitability in food.
1 November 2008
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The retail food prices in the US rose about 4% in 2007, which is the highest in 17 years. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), prices are expected to rise faster than the general inflation rate at 3.5-4% through 2010, while global food prices could rise by as much as 4.5%. These economic conditions have created opportunities for consumers and foodservice operators to consider underutilized protein to battle with rising food costs. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported that some restaurateurs in the country are coping with rising costs by offering a less expensive meat cut, decreasing portion sizes and serving meat scraps that are traditionally used in hamburgers “as a $12.95 steak tartare at Murray's steakhouse in Minneapolis”.
Dried plums can be used to raise the value of underutilized proteins. Labeled simply as “natural flavors”, the non-characterizing flavor of dried plums helps to improve the savory taste of the meat while rounding out the flavors of herbs and spices.
Value-added meat with dried plums
Adding value to underutilized meat is an effective way to improve profitability in food. Many of the lesser value meat were traditionally sold at low prices or were used in applications that yield low margins.
Processors often use conventional manufacturing techniques or synthetic ingredients on these meats but the lengthy list of ingredients reflected on food labels, the use of new additives, unsatisfactory sensory improvement and the short shelf life of products often failed to meet consumers’ expectations.
Dried plums can be used to raise the value of underutilized proteins. Labeled simply as “natural flavors”, the non-characterizing flavor of dried plums helps to improve the savory taste of the meat while rounding out the flavors of herbs and spices.
Adding value to underutilized meat is an effective way to improve profitability in food. Many of the lesser value meat were traditionally sold at low prices or were used in applications that yield low margins.
The natural water-binding abilities of dried plums can add 12% or more weight to meat during vacuum tumbling. Much of the weight is also retained throughout the cooking process. The plums also improve the ability to control purge and their antioxidants help to extend shelf life in fresh and frozen meat.
Dried plums can be used in beef, pork, chicken and turkey products. They are used in the form of pastes, bits, diced fruit, purees, juice concentrates and powders in meat processing applications.
Adding protein
According to the National Meat Case Study 2007 sponsored by Cryovac, Beef Checkoff and Pork Checkoff, value-added meat options sold at supermarkets grew from 4% of total meat case packages in 2002 to 10% in 2007. Although value-added chicken accounts for 7% of the chicken category in an average meat department, many of these new chicken options are increasing found in the frozen food sections and in delis.
Meanwhile, value-added pork products have almost doubled their market share in the packaged segment from 12% in 2004 to 23% in 2007. There was a 5% increase in the turkey category with 19% of packages having an added flavor or ingredient compared to 14% in 2004.
• Beef
Beef value-added cuts from the under-utilized chuck and round portions. This recently developed line of beef cuts consists of steaks and roasts that help to improve overall profitability for meat processors and operators while providing more options to their customers. They enable consumers to enjoy tasty steaks and roasts that are moderately priced and are also easy to prepare.
These new cuts resulted from new cutting techniques introduced by the beef industry‘s Muscle Profiling Study. Several of these cuts have grown in popularity and are now being manufactured throughout the US and sold in retail and foodservice outlets.
The beef industry has added much value to cuts from the chuck and round that information organization Cattle-Fax says they account for more than half the $15/cwt price, which has been added to the price of fed cattle due to growing consumer demand.
“If we figure that the growth has been worth $15/cwt on a fed steer, the increased demand in chuck products will account for $6-$7/cwt of that increase,” says Mike Miller, Cattle-Fax director of business development. “This represents a huge effort in changing the value and makeup of the chuck and the way it was merchandised.” He says while the value of the loin and rib increased 3% and 4% between 1988 and 1993 respectively, chuck value had declined 24%, round value dropped 25% and the value of trimmings from these primal cuts had plummeted 28%. The industry’s wake up call came when the chuck and the round were reported to account for 69% of the total carcass weight.
The industry’s first success of the beef value cuts program was the flatiron steak – a muscle from the chuck shoulder, a sub-primal that traditionally has been either ground up or used as blade roasts and steaks.
The whole muscle, which is traditionally not known for its tender meat, is the flatiron that is second only to the loin's tenderloin. When the flatiron steak was introduced in the market in 1998, the value of the chuck increased 60% and the value of the round increased 32%.
Turkey processors marketing fresh or frozen sausages and patty products often demand natural label claims with few ingredients and products with extended shelf life. Dried plums can achieve these goals.
• Raising the value of lifter steak
The top blade steak, also known as the lifter steak, is a smaller cut from the top blade roast. Although it is considered as a lowly chuck steak, the marinated lifter steak is tender enough to be grilled, broiled or pan-fried. While it may require some cuts around some gristle (which can be removed in processing) upon consumption, it is an economical and flavorful steak for making fajitas, London broil or serve as a substitute for flank steak or skirt steak.
Marinating is a critical step to tenderizing lifter steaks, particularly if the marinade includes plum juice concentrate and the lifter meat is vacuum-tumbled. Plum juice concentrate is a USDA-approved natural fl avor and when it is when combined with other flavor system ingredients, it helps to tenderize and bind moisture during cooking. When the meat is processed using this method, the resultant taste profile could match or even exceed that of flank steak and London broil. Listing the juice on the food label also helps to simplify food labels, as consumers understand and appreciate the natural properties of plums. See Table 1 for some examples of marinades using dried plums for lifter steaks.
There are significant savings in marinating and vacuum tumbling lifter steaks. The wholesale price of lifter steaks in the US in March this year is at about $2.20/lb. The plum juice concentrate used in the marinade is estimated at 21-24˘/lb for a total ingredient cost of $2.41- 2.44/lb. The wholesale price of flank steak is at about $4.55-4.81/lb. Substituting lifter steak for flank steak could therefore significantly improve the returns with comparable meat quality.
• Roasting poultry
Older, heavy hens and large roasting hens weighing 2.27-3.18kg or more often produce large, tough breast meat. Meat obtained from smaller, lighter weight broilers is therefore preferred by processors. Using a marinade that includes dried plum powder and vacuum tumbling would improve the texture and flavor of these larger chicken breasts. Such meat can be used to substitute the more expensive broiler breast meat at a lower cost. The antioxidants found in dried plums could also suppress the growth of normal bacteria, thus extending the shelf life of the meat. See Table 2 for some examples of the applications.
Mechanically separated turkey breast meat and turkey thigh meat often provide less value to processors than whole breast meat. This is particularly true of meat taken from older, larger birds. Turkey processors marketing fresh or frozen sausages and patty products often demand natural label claims with few ingredients and products with extended shelf life. Dried plums can achieve these goals with examples in Table 3.
.• Boosting the flavor and moisture of pork
Industry research revealed that pork tenderloin is just as lean as a skinless chicken breast. The USDA analysis found that pork tenderloin contains 2.98g of fat per 85g serving, compared to 3.03 grams of fat in an 85g serving of skinless chicken breast.
Pork tenderloin also meets government guidelines for the "extra lean" status. On average, six common cuts of pork are found to be 16% leaner than those 15 years ago, and saturated fat has dropped 27%. The new study was a collaborative effort of scientists at the USDA, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of Maryland and the National Pork Board.
Adding dried plums to the improved nutritional value of pork can enhance the sensory value of lean pork. Vacuum-tumbled marinades and rubs containing dried plums can add more flavor, moisture and tenderness to meat. Moisture pickup can be as much as 12% or more and much of the moisture is retained after cooking.
www.californiadriedplums.org
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