Purpose - This study aims to assess the effects of calcium chloride marination on buffalo meat tenderness, instrumental color and palatability traits and to compare the effects with that of aging, so as to suggest a cost-effective tenderizing method to meat retailers. Design/methodology/approach - Buffalo longissimus thoracis (LT) steaks were marinated post-rigor with 200-mM (5 per cent w/w) calcium chloride solution and were subjected to aging at 2-4 degrees C for eight days. The pH, water holding capacity (WHC), cooking loss, color, myofibrillar fragmentation index, Warner-Bratzler shear force and sensory quality attributes were assessed at 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8 days post-mortem. The values were then compared with those of control steaks kept at the same storage conditions. Findings - Marination was not found to affect pH, WHC, cooking loss or color as compared to the control steaks. Tenderness was found to be improved in marinated steaks by 53.44 per cent as against 35.59 per cent in those that aged without marination. The sensory panel evaluation showed that marinated steaks significantly improved (p < 0.01) in the scores for the different attributes, and no flavor problems or alterations in cooked color were noticed. Research limitations/implications - The animals used in this study fall in the age group of four-eight years with one of them being four years old and the rest above the age of six years. Given the fact that, age-related increase in pyridinoline content of intramuscular collagen and cross-link formation influenced by sex can contribute to the toughness of meat in spent animals (Bosselmann et al., 1995), the variation in age of the animals under study could be regarded as a limitation of the study. But apart from one animal, all of them were more than six years old, forming more or less uniform samples. Originality/value - This research is of value to the meat industry or retailers. The post-rigor marination of buffalo LT steaks with 200-mM CaCl2 (5 per cent w/w) appears to be a promising measure from the view of practicability. The relative ease of operation makes it superior to other successful techniques in reducing toughness, such as electrical stimulation.
