Formation of crust of dried meat and its relationship to moisture migration during air drying

Abstract

To speed up the migration of moisture during air drying under common condition (35°C, 60% relative humidity, 3 m/s wind speed), the relationship between crust formation and moisture migration was investigated. The results showed that shear force was inversely proportional to moisture content, meanwhile moisture content in surface decreased more quickly than that in the inner part of lamb cubes during air drying (p < .05). This indicated that the crust of meat surface was due to quicker decline of moisture content. Light microscopy showed that, the formation of crust and decrease of crust's porosity with drying was partly due to shrinkage of the connective tissue. This study concluded that changing the shrinkage characteristics of connective tissue might be a way to increase the meat porosity, influence the water migration, and shorten the drying time. Practical applications Jerky processing, especially drying of it, is time and energy consuming. The aim of this article was to find the relationship between crust and water migration during air drying. We found that changing the shrinkage characteristics of connective tissue might be a way to increase the meat porosity, influence the water migration, and shorten the drying time. This study provides some ideas for shortening the drying time of jerky.