Meat, Poultry, and Seafood
Ch. 8
Purchasing, Storing, and
Preparing Meats, Poultry and
Seafood
8.1
Purchasing Meat
• Serving meat is one of the most expensive,
yet profitable areas
• Meat can be purchase from a whole carcass
to individual cuts of meat
• Government inspection is mandatory
• U.S. Dept. of Agriculture has established
grades called quality grades
• Quality Grade = standards given to meats based
on their freshness and quality
• Yield Grade = refers to the amount of usable
meat after the fat has been trimmed (this only
applies to lamb and beef)
Storing Meats
• Sanitary procedures must be followed when
storing meats
• Meat should be loosely wrapped in airpermeable paper and stored under
refrigeration.
• Never tightly wrap fresh meats in plastic wrap
because this creates a perfect breading
ground for bacteria and will severely limit the
shelf life.
Butchering Meats
• Cattle butchered for beef is cut into 4 sections.
Cattle that is butchered from age of one day up to
fifteen weeks are cut into two halves and sold as
veal.
• Hogs are slaughtered and cut into two halves.
• Sheep slaughtered under the age of one year are
considered lamb; after that age them must be
labeled mutton. Lambs are cut directly into primal
cuts.
• Primal cuts = are primary divisions of meat produced
by the initial butchering of animal carcasses.
Aging Meats
• Meat must be aged between 48 and 72
hours to allow the muscles to relax.
• Butchers hang the meat during aging to
help lengthen the muscle fibers and
increase the tenderness of the meat.
• Meat that is aged longer becomes more
expensive because the carcass looses
more water which shrink the meat.
Fabrication
• At the end of the aging period, the carcass is
then cut into primal cuts
• Look at page 343 in your book
• Fabrication = is the process of cutting
primal cuts into usable potions
• Retail cuts =cuts that are ready for sale.
• They can be primal cuts or fabricated portions
• The amount of cutting or butchering necessary to
prepare a retail cut affects its price.
Fabrication Continued
• Tying = a roast ensures even cooking and
keeps the shape of the meat.
• Trimming = a tenderloin must be done very
carefully because it is one of the most
expensive cuts
• Silverskin = tough membrane that surrounds the meat
• Butterflying = cut a piece of meat
lengthwise nearly in half so that it opens out
and lies flat.
Fabrication Continued
• Cuts from boneless loin or tenderloin of
beef, veal, lamb, or pork can be made
into a variety of menu cuts:
• Medallions – small, round pieces molded by
wrapping them
• Noisettes – small, usually round portion of
meat
• Scallops – thin, boneless cuts that are lightly
pounded
• Emince – thin strips of meat used for sautéing
Other Meats
• Offal meats = are organ meats from hogs,
cattle or sheet
• Sweetbread (thymus glands), liver, kidney, tripe
(muscular stomach lining), hear and brain
• Game meats = are form animals that are
not raise domestically
• Deer, wild boar, moose and elk
• Kosher meat = meats are especially
slaughtered to comply with Jewish dietary
laws
Purchasing Poultry
• Poultry = include chicken, duck,
goose, guinea, squab, turkey etc.
• Like beef, poultry also goes under mandatory
inspection
• Quality grades are
• USDA A
USDA B
USDA C
• Factors that determine grade are: shape of carcass,
ratio of meat to bone, amount of feathers, hair, and
don and number (if any) of cuts or broken bones
Storing Poultry
• All types of fresh poultry should be
wrapped loosely and stored under
refrigeration between 32°F-36°F
• Free-range poultry = raised in large
yards and given a lot of space to roam
and exercise their muscles
• This makes meat darker in color and gives the
meat a slight different taste and texture.
• Game birds (rising interest)
Poultry Fabrication
• Poultry fabrication includes
• Disjointing and boning (separating meat from
bones) – page 348-349
• Not all birds are fabricated some birds are left
whole and trussed = which means the legs
and wings are tied to the bird’s body so the
entire bird cooks evenly and stays moist
Purchasing Fish and Shellfish
• Fish and shellfish inspections are not
required by the federal government,
there is a voluntary program called
Packed Under Federal Inspection (PUFI)
• After passing inspection fish is given a grade of
A, B, or C grade
• Fish is highly perishable – they should be
moist, firm, elastic flesh, clear and full eyes,
gills should have a bright red color
• Live crabs and lobster should move about
Purchasing Fish and Shellfish
Continued
• Most shellfish are purchased live and must be
checked to make sure they are fresh when received.
• Tightly closed shells
• Reject any delivery containing open shells that wont close or broken
shells
• To help ensure safety the FDA requires that all
foodservice establishments keep dated shell stock
tags from shellfish for 90 days.
• There are two basic categories of fish:
• Fin Fish
• Flat – flounder, sole halibut
• Round fin fish – cod, grouper, red snapper, catfish, trout etc.
• Shellfish
• Mollusks – oysters, clams, mussels
• Crustaceans – lobster, shrimp, crab
Storing Fish and Shellfish
• Fresh fish should be stored in crushed
ice in a refrigerated unit – used within 3
days, preferably within one day of
delivery.
• Fresh shellfish should be stored in a
covered container in a refrigerated unit.
Fabricating Fish and Shellfish
• Fin fish fabricated
• Most of the trim can be put to use in the kitchen by a soup, sauce,
canapé etc.
• Fish fabrication techniques consist of
• Scaling, trimming, gutting, and filleting the fish
• Scaling = scales are scarped off their skin.
• Gutting round fish = slit is made in the fish’s bells and the guts,
or insides are pulled out
• Gutting flat fish = cut are made around the head, as the head is
pulled away from the body, the guts come with it.
• Filleting = separates the flesh of the fish from the bones
• Goujonetts – small strips
• Paupiettes – thin rolled files filled w/a stuffing
Mollusks and Crustaceans
• Two classifications of shellfish
• Mollusks = shellfish characterized by a
soft, unsegmented body, no internal
skeleton and a hard out shell. Ex. clams
• Shucked = removed from the shell (do not destroy
shell)
• Crustaceans = have segmented shells
and jointed legs. Ex. lobsters
• Deveining = process of removing a shrimp’s
digestive tract.
Questions 8.1
Match the term with the definition
1.
Fabrication
2.
3.
4.
Silverskin
Agining
Yield grade
5.
Veal
6.
Mutton
7.
Primal cuts
8.
9.
10.
Retail cuts
Medallions
Noisettes
a. Small, round piece of meat molded by
wrapping in cheesecloth
b. Little “nuts” of meat
c. Sheep slaughtered after the age of 1
d. Working with primal cuts of meat to
customize them
e. Cattle that are butchered from the age
of 1 day to 15 weeks
f. The amount of usable meat after the fat
has been trimmed
g. Gives meat a darker color and also
makes it more expensive
h. Tough membrane on meat
i. Leg, loin, rib, and shoulder cuts
K. Cuts ready for sale
Cooking Meat, Poultry and
Seafood
8.2
Meat Composition
• Muscle tissue consists of about:
•
•
•
•
75% Water
20% Protein
5% Fat
Add is made up of a network of muscle fibers bound together in
bundles
• Each of the fibers is surrounded by connective tissues, there are two
types of connective tissue:
• Collagen – breaks down during long, slow, moist heat cooking
• Elastin = will not break down during cooking and needs to be
trimmed
• The amount of connective tissue in a muscle increases as the
animal ages and the more the animal is exercised.
• Marbling = fat that builds up between the muscle fibers
Flavor, Tenderness, and Moisture
• Goal is make meat flavor and tender.
• The reduction in collagen increases the tenderness of the
meat, but at the same time, the los of moisture dries it out.
• Moist-heat methods are generally slower
and allow collagen to break down.
• Tender pieces of meat use quick dry-heat method.
• Marinade = a liquid made of oil, acid and herbs and
spices. (acid in the marinade breaks down the
collagen)
• Dry marinade/spice rub = combination of dry herbs,
spices, and salt to give extra flavor.
• Bard = tying bacon to a roast to add fat and flavor
Searing =
caramelize
outside of
meat,
improving
flavor and
appearance of
finished
product
Dry-Heat Cooking
Meats best suited to
dry-heat, are meat
that is naturally
tender.
Dry heat with fats =
stir-frying ,pan-frying
and deep-frying
• Mirepoix = a combination of chopped
aromatic vegetables (usually 2 parts onion, 1
part carrot and 1 part celery)
• Jus = sauce that incorporates drippings
released during roasting
• Deglazing = swirl a liquid in a pan to
dissolve cooked particles or food remaining
on the bottom. (au jus)
• Pan gravy = is a sauce thickened with a
roux incorporation the fat from a roast and
adding water or stock.
• Carryover cooking = heat retained in
cooked foods that allows continued cooking
even after item I removed from the oven.
Moist-heat Cooking
These are for cuts of meat that are tough.
Combination Cooking- uses both dry and moist heat
cooking methods
Determining Doneness
• One of the most important steps:
• Beef Roasts
• Rare – 130F (meat red on the inside, thin layer of brown)
• Medium – 140-145F (meat will be pink, well browned outside)
• Well-done -160F (completely cooked)
• Allow meat to REST, very important, juices goes back into
the meat. AT LEAST 10 MINUTES
• Veal and Pork – cooked all the way thru
• Pork could contain trichinosis = a disease caused by a
parasite that lives in muscle tissue – cook until internal
temperature of 150F
Dry-Heat Cooking for Poultry
• Juices need to be colorless
• Roasting requires a longer cooking time
because this techniques is used to cook
a whole bird
• Cooked until thermometer reaches 150165F to kill all traces of salmonella
• Dressing for birds need to be made separately
Cooking Poultry
• Poultry is especially suited for dry-heat cooking
with fats/oils
• Includes sautéing, stir-frying, pan=frying and deep-frying
• Steaming is a healthy way to prepare poultry
because the nutrients are not washed away (Flesh
of poultry should be opaque) Simmering and
poaching are also excellent techniques
• Combination cooking includes stewing and
braising, good cooking technique because nutrients
goes into the sauce
Cooking Fish and Seafood
• Most fish are baked between 350°F-400°F.
• Large fish need to be baked at a lower temperature so
the entire fish will bake evenly
• Lean fish and shellfish are best when using
dry-heat cooking with fats and oil
• Fish/Shellfish should be coated with flour or a breading
before cooking in either clarified butter or oil
• Moist-heat cooking techniques – poaching,
simmering, and steaming are excellent ways
to cook fish, especially lean varieties
• Court bouillon = stock made of vegetables and an acid
• Fumet = rich fish stock made with wine, or simmered in
its own juices
Cooking Fish and Seafood
Continued
• Shallow-poached fish and shellfish
should be opaque.
• Finished item should be moist and extremely
tender
• Cooking muscles, clams etc. make sure the
shell opens during cooking otherwise throw
them AWAY
• En papillote = moist-heat cooking techniques
that is especially suited to fish (the fish herb
etc are encased in parchment paper and
steamed in a hot oven)
Cooking Fish and Seafood
Continued
• Bouillabaisse = French seafood stew made
with assorted fish and shellfish, onions,
tomatoes, white wine, olive oil, garlic, saffron
and herbs
• Jambalaya = Creole stew from Louisiana
made with rice, shellfish and vegetables
• Seafood Newburg = lobster, crab or shrimp
in a rich sauce made from butter, cream, egg
yolks, sherry and seasoning.
8.2 Questions
1. Identify the cooking techniques below as A
(dry-heat), B (dry-heat cooking with fat), C
(moist heat), or D (combination cooking)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Grilling
Sautéing
Stewing
Poaching
Braising
Stir-frying
Broiling
Simmering
2. Why do you marinate your meat?
3. Large birds are often trussed because?
Charcuterie and Garde-manger
8.3
• Charcuterie = “cooked flesh”, refers to
specially prepared pork products include
sausages, smoked hams, bacon, pates,
and terrines
• Garde-manager = refers to a
kitchen’s pantry section where these
cold foods are stored and the work area
where they are prepared.
Sausage
• Traditionally sausage were ground pork, forced into a
casing made from the lining of animal intestines
• Today many other meats are very popular
including game, beef, veal, poultry, fish,
shellfish and even vegetables.
• There are three main types of sausage:
• Fresh sausage – made with raw ingredients ex.
Kielbasa or chorizo
• Smoked or cooked sausage – raw meat products
treated with preservatives ex. bratwurst or
frankfurter
• Dried or hard sausage – made with cured meats,
then air-dried ex Italian salami and pepperoni
Forcemeats
• Forcemeat = mixture of lean ground meat
and fat that is emulsified or forced to
combine in a food grinder and then pushed
through a sieve to create a smooth paste.
• Pate = rich loaf made of meat, game, poultry, seafood,
and/or vegetables, baked in a mold.
• Straight forcemeats = very finely ground, seasoned
with herbs and spices and then cooked in earthenware
mold called a terrine.
• Sometimes the forcemeat is wrapped in a dough and
placed in a terrine mold, also different vegetables are
arranged in terrines to make this appetizer.
Forcemeat Continued
• Mousseline = forcemeat made of veal,
poultry or fish.
• Can be shaped into dumpling-shaped ovals and poached
in a rich stock or court bouillon to make quenelles
• Galantine = are traditionally made of
chicken forcemeat, but is now ,and with a
number of different meats.
• Forcemeat is rolled into a round loaf inside the chicken
skin, then poached for up to an hour and a half.
8.3 Questions
1.
Mousseline
2.
3.
Quenelle
Terrine
4.
Galantine
5.
Sausage
6.
Fresh sausage
7.
8.
Smoked sausage
Dried or hard sausage
9.
Forcemeat
10.
Pate dough
a. Ground meat forced into a casing made of
animal intestines
b. Forcemeat made of veal, poultry or fish
c. Small dumpling shaped ovals poached in a
rich stock
d. Mixture of lean ground meat and fat forced
through a sieve
e. Chicken forcemeat rolled in chicken
skin and poached
f. Forcemeat rolled in pate dough and baked
in an earthenware mold
g. Crust surrounding a baking forcemeat
h. Sausage made with fresh ingredients that
have not been cured or smoked
i. Sausage made with raw meat products
treated with preservatives
j. Sausage made with cured meats, then airdried under sanitary conditions