CURING

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• Before the advent of refrigeration, curing was
the addition of salt to meat for the purpose of
preservation.
• Used to produce – pleasant flavor, color and
appearance
• Ingredients include NaCl, NaNO3 and NaNO2

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Functions of the salts.
• NaCl – Used in all curing formulae, not in high
concentration to effect preservation purposes.
If used as such the product would be too salty.
Used to enhance flavor
• NaNO3. Used as Sodium or potassium salt.
Responsible for the color but it must be
reduced to NO2 by microorganisms

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• NO2
• Used as Na or K salt. Responsible for the color
as it combines with myoglobin to form
nitrosomyoglobulin

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• With refrigeration, curing achieves unique
color, flavor, texture *in massaged or tumbled
products)and palatability
• Curing divided into: Traditional and Rapid
cures
• Central principle is to ensure distribution of
cure ingredients

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Forms of curing
• Dry cure – Involves rubbing of cure ingredients to
the surface. It takes long for curing to occur
because of poor diffusion of ingredients and
sometimes needs more than one application
• Brine cure – Use of brine containing the curing
salts NaCl 20%, NO2 0.08% and NO3 at 0.2%. Brine
introduced into meat by artery pumping, Stitch
and multineedle injection pumping
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Role of ingredients
• NaCl – flavor and 3-5% w/v gives acceptable
flavor.
• NO3 Serves as source of NO2. HNO2 NO+ H2O
+ HNO3
• NO2 Reduced to NO and this combines with
myoglobulin to form
nitrosomyoglobin(NOMB), the color of cured
meat.
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• 5ppm is required for formation of NOMb. The
color is not stable
• 20ppm gives stable NOMb
• Flavor of cured meat increases with
concentration of NO. 50-100ppm gives
acceptable flavor.
• For protection against poisoning by Cl.
botulinum, 100ppm are required.

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• Protection is the combined effect of curing
salts, pH of emulsion formed and heating to
liberate PERIGO factor.
• Traditional Cure (Wiltshire cring)
• Pigs are slaughtered in a humane manner,
dressed, chilled at 3-7oC, sides deboned,
trimmed off fat and injected with brine which
must be freshly made

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• Injection brine NaCl 18-22% target uptake 20%,
NaNO2 0.006-0.10 % target 0.08% and NaNO3 at
0.15- 0.25 target 0.2%.
• Temp. is controlled between 3-4.5oC to inhibit
microbial growth. It is expected the injected sides
to take up 8-10% of brine.
• The injected sides are sprinkled with salts,
immersed in tank with immersion brine. Temp
controlled at 3-4,5oC and pH of brine not to
exceed 6.5
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• Immersion brine – NaCl 25-27%, NO2 0.08- 0.12%
and NO3 0.24 – 0.40%. Remain here for 72-120
hrs if hand injected and 48-96 hrs if machine
injected.
• The brine concentration and pH are constantly
checked and adjusted. pH should be between 6.8-
6.9. If pH increases it develops off flavor.
Humidity not exceed 85%.
• Microbial count not to exceed 5x105cfu in plate
Agar containing 4% Salt.
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• The sides are stacked rind upwards to mature.
Temp. 3-4.5oC for 5 days and humidity not
above 85%.
• Smoked or not. Stored at -2 – 4oC
Rapid cures
• Differ from traditional cures in i) they use
other additives ii). Use mechanical agitation
and iii). Use to cure sides and primal cuts and
also from older animals
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Mechanical agitation
• May involve massaging or tumbling. Tumbling
-imagine movement of cement mixer while
massage is similar but takes longer and may
rotate in alternate directions
• Whether tumbling or massaging, the effects
are: - i). Accelerates brine dispersion in the
meat. Agitation causes distortion of muscle
fibers allowing free movement of brine

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• Ii). Improved uniformity of color. With improved
dispersion , brine comes into proximity of
myoglobin as a result of distortion of sarcolemma
• Iii). Improved uniformity of texture. Mechanical
agitation has a tenderizing effect
• Iv). Improved muscle binding. There is extraction
of salts soluble proteins, these coat myofibers
and on heating, the proteins coagulate and form
stable junctions act as the binding matrix.
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• Successful product depends on: i) adequate
disruption of myofibrils. Must have adequate
massage or tumbling time. Ii). Sufficient
solubilization of proteins for adequate binding
and iii). Realignment of salt soluble proteins to
form the stabilized junctions during cooking.
• Use of other additives. Worthy of mention are
ascorbates and phosphates.

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ASCORBATES
• Ascorbic acid and erythrobic acids or its Na
salts are used in emulsions
• They function as cure accelerators. They
reduce formation of nitrosometmyglobin
(NometMb) by increasing formation of NO.
3HNO3 2NO+HNO3+3H2O . Ascorbates
shift the reaction to the right .

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• In the presence of oxygen, NOMb is oxidized to
NOmetMb thus causing the color to fade.
Ascorbates scavenge for oxygen thus reducing the
tendency to oxidize NOMb.
• NO combines readily with primary amines to
form nitrosoamines known to be carcinogens.
Ascorbates inhibit the nitosylation of amines thus
preventing the formation of carcinogenic
nitrosoderivatives but they have no effect on
dimethylamines.

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• Phenols and tocopherols known antioxidants
reduce the formation of volatile
nitrosoamines.
Phosphates
• All phosphates are hydrolyzed to ortho form
depending on temperature, pH, enzyme
catalysts.

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• Phosphates function as:- i) increase meat pH
and therefore WHC, ii) increase WHC due to
net charge effect,iii). They are metal chelators
thus reduce the steric effect and increase
WHC and iv). They act as ATP analogues.

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AIM
• Explain the role of mechanical agitation and
other added additives in rapid cures

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