Effects of Fast Freezing First Then Thaw-Aging on Quality and Chemical Attributes of Beef Muscles

Freezing is an effective preservation method to extend the shelf life of meat products. Despite of the benefits, quality deteriorations associated with freezing, such as decreases in water holding capacity (WHC) and/or oxidative stability have been well documented. Fast freezing is known to enhance the quality of frozen/thawed meat by inducing the formation of intracellular small ice crystal formation, and thus reducing muscle damage. Aging prior to freezing is a common process to improve the quality of the frozen meat. As positive aging impacts can be shown after freezing/thawing, we hypothesized that fast freezing first then thaw-aging would result in equivalent or better meat quality attributes compared to the conventionally aged/frozen beef products. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different freezing rate and aging/freezing sequence on quality and physicochemical attributes of beef loins.