Effect of meat marinating in kefir, yoghurt and buttermilk on the texture and color of pork steaks cooked sous-vide

Texture and color are some of the most important qualitative features of meat and its products. They affect the acceptance among consumers, and they are very important parameters of the culinary and meat industry's usefulness of meat. However, cooked meat is usually not enough soft and juicy to satisfy consumers. Researches try to find methods to improve the texture of the meat products. One method is acidic marinating meat. But there are no reports on the use of fermented dairy products (FDP) for meat marinating. The acids contained in FDP can be improved tenderness, juiciness and color of meat products. Also, the use of lower heat treatment temperature for cooking meat positively affects its sensory properties and texture. The aim of the study was the impact of meat marinating in FDP (kefir, yoghurt and buttermilk) marinating time (3, 6, 9 and 12 days) and sous-vide (SV) cooking temperature (vacuum, 60 or 80 °C, 6 h), on texture and color parameters of pork steaks. Marinating the meat increased the tenderness (lowering the hardness and chewiness) of steaks. The best results were obtained by marinating steaks in buttermilk or yoghurt for 6 or 9 days and SV cooking at 60 °C for 6 h. There was no influence of the marinade type and SV cooking temperature on L* and b* color parameters. Redness increased with marinating time and cooking temperature. Kefir and buttermilk did not affect the a* value of SV cooked steaks; however, marinating in yoghurt reduced that value.