On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 283

much; otherwise the filaments bunch up and bond very tightly and the meat becomes exceptionally tough Eventually, proteindigesting enzymes within the muscle fibers begin to eat away the framework that holds the actin and myosin filaments in place The filaments are still locked together, and the muscles cannot be stretched, but the overall muscle structure weakens, and the meat texture softens This is the beginning of the aging process It becomes noticeable after about a day in beef, after several hours in pork and chicken The inevitable toughening during rigor mortis can be worsened by poor temperature control, and may be the source of excessive toughness in retail meats Aging Like cheese and wine, meat benefits from a certain period of aging, or slow chemical change, during which it gets progressively more flavorful Meat also becomes more tender In the 19th century, beef and mutton joints would be kept at room temperature for days or weeks, until the outside was literally rotten The French called this mortification, and the great chef Antonin Carême said that it should proceed “as far as possible.” The modern taste is for somewhat less mortified flesh! In fact most meat in the United States is aged only incidentally, during the few days it takes to be shipped from packing plant to market This is enough for chicken, which benefits from a day or two of aging, and for pork and lamb, which benefit from a week (The unsaturated fats of pork and poultry go rancid relatively quickly.) But the flavor and texture of beef keeps improving for up to a month, especially when whole, unwrapped sides are dry-aged at 34–38ºF/1–3ºC and at a relative humidity of 70–80% The cool temperature limits the growth of microbes, ... benefits from a day or two of aging, and for pork and lamb, which benefit from a week (The unsaturated fats of pork and poultry go rancid relatively quickly.) But the flavor and texture of beef keeps improving for up to a... tender In the 19th century, beef and mutton joints would be kept at room temperature for days or weeks, until the outside was literally rotten The French called this mortification, and the great chef Antonin Carême said that it... texture of beef keeps improving for up to a month, especially when whole, unwrapped sides are dry-aged at 34–38ºF/1–3ºC and at a relative humidity of 70–80% The cool temperature limits the growth of microbes,