On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 297

tube of liquid: so the meat gets progressively firmer and moister Then between 140 and 150ºF/60–65ºC, the meat suddenly releases lots of juice, shrinks noticeably, and becomes chewier These changes are caused by the denaturing of collagen in the cells’ connective-tissue sheaths, which shrink and exert new pressure on the fluid-filled cells inside them The fluid flows copiously, the piece of meat loses a sixth or more of its volume, and its protein fibers become more densely packed and so harder to cut through Meat served in this temperature range, the equivalent of medium-rare, is changing from juicy to dry Falling-Apart Tenderness: Collagen Becomes Gelatin If the cooking continues, the meat will get progressively dryer, more compacted, and stiff Then around 160ºF/70ºC, connective-tissue collagen begins to dissolve into gelatin With time, the connective tissue softens to a jelly-like consistency, and the muscle fibers that it had held tightly together are more easily pushed apart The fibers are still stiff and dry, but they no longer form a monolithic mass, so the meat seems more tender And the gelatin provides a succulence of its own This is the delightful texture of slow-cooked meats, long braises, and stews and barbecues How cooking forces moisture from meat Water molecules are bound up in the protein fibrils that fill each muscle cell As the meat is heated, the proteins coagulate, the fibrils squeeze out some of the water they had contained and shrink The thin elastic sheet of connective tissue around each muscle cell then squeezes the unbound water out the cut ... in the protein fibrils that fill each muscle cell As the meat is heated, the proteins coagulate, the fibrils squeeze out some of the water they had contained and shrink The thin elastic sheet of. .. they no longer form a monolithic mass, so the meat seems more tender And the gelatin provides a succulence of its own This is the delightful texture of slow-cooked meats, long braises, and stews and barbecues...connective tissue softens to a jelly-like consistency, and the muscle fibers that it had held tightly together are more easily pushed apart The fibers are still stiff and dry, but they no longer form a monolithic mass, so the