Effects of Meat-conditioning and Lactic Fermentation on Pork Muscle Protein Degradation

Abstract

Fresh and conditioned pork were incubated with and without lactic acid bacteria, and the meat protein degradation during incubation was investigated. The combination of meat-conditioning and addition of lactic acid bacteria considerably accelerated the protein degradation of meat mixtures. It was considered that the protein degradation in the lactic fermented pork was caused by proteases originated in meats, and both meat-conditioning and lactic acid fermentation acted as enhancing effectors.