Physicochemical characteristics of breast and thigh meats from old broiler breeder hen and old laying hen and their effects on quality properties of pressed ham

The consumption of meat products from old broiler breeder hen (OBH) and old laying hen (OLH) is limited by their poor organoleptic properties. In this study, the physicochemical properties of breast and thigh meat from OBH and OLH and their application to the development of pressed ham with better quality properties were examined. To manufacture pressed ham, 3 different chicken meat mixtures (mixture A, 50% breast and 50% thigh from OBH; mixture B, 50% breast and 50% thigh meat from OLH; mixture C, 25% breast and 25% thigh from OBH and OLH, respectively) were used. Breast meat from OBH showed a higher water holding capacity (WHC; P < 0.001), a* values (P < 0.05), and tenderness (P < 0.001) and lower cooking loss (P < 0.001) and b* values (P < 0.01) than those of other samples. No significant differences in physicochemical properties of thigh meat were detected between OBH and OLH. Regardless of chicken breed, the thigh samples showed significantly higher pH values, cooking loss, and a* and significantly lower WHC, L*, and b* than those of breast samples. The quality properties of pressed ham were affected by the physicochemical characteristics of meat ingredients, including pH, WHC, and textural properties. The pressed ham samples with mixtures A and B showed the lowest (P < 0.05) and highest (P < 0.05) values, respectively, for cooking loss, L*, b*, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness. The highest (P < 0.05) overall acceptability scores were obtained for samples made with mixture A. Thus, breast and thigh meat from OBH could be used for pressed ham with favorable WHC, tenderness, and overall acceptability.