Studies on Curing of Meat Products-II

Degradation of Nitrate and Nitrite during Meat Curing

Abstract

The influence of several additives and heating process on the variations of nitrate and nitrite in cured tuna, whale and pork meats were investigated in relation to the development of cured meat color.
In nitrate-treated meat, phosphate and sucrose accelerated the reduction of nitrate to nitrite, while addition of them to nitrite-treated meat resulted in high residual nitrite level and poor development of cured meat color.
Reducing agents such as ascorbic acid, sodium ascorbate and cysteine seemed to inhibit this reduction. Thus since they catalyzed the reduction of nitrite to nitric oxide, there occurred a very low residual nitrite level and the resultant in high development of cured meat color.
At the first stage of heating, there occurred a rapid decrease of nitrite in cured meat due to reaction of nitric oxide with myoglobin. On the other hand, after heat denaturation of the protein, there was still a steady and considerable decrease in residual nitrite level, which is assumed mainly due to the reaction of nitrite with free amino groups.
Although the aspect of the degradation process of nitrate and nitrite in cured meat differed in tuna, whale and pork, further experiments are necessary to clarify whether this difference is specific or not.