Why is younger animal meat more tender

And finally, Cornish game hens are small enough that at fancy dinner parties, every person can have their own hen. Though the turkey as a living, breathing animal is somewhat unusual-looking, very little sets it apart once you get down to preparing it for a meal. Every piece of it, from its typically drier white meat to its slightly more tender dark meat is … fine.

Yes, you can season it, smoke it, or deep-fry it until you find the balance that makes sense for you. You can slice it for a sandwich, grind it into a burger, rely on it as a leaner alternative to beef. The one thing turkey does better than any other meat is serve as a blank slate. Yes, chicken can also go with most everything, but it at least has more taste on its own than turkey does.

You need turkey. But for some reason, many people who generally avoid seafood tend to find their peace with shrimp, a compact creature with stringy tendons that morphs from a sickly gray to a pleasant pink shade when cooked. Whether simmered in a pasta sauce or chilled and brushed sparingly with lemon for a cocktail appetizer, a shrimp is a yummy, salty bite. Because frogs are small, lean creatures with little meat on their bones, you may not expect frog meat to be so delicious.

But frog meat has an extra jolt of richness that chicken typically lacks, and should be treasured accordingly. Of course, this is only true if scallops are cooked past their slimy original forms. Scallops are delicate, prone to being overshadowed if you approach them without care.

Cooking them right is a surprisingly difficult task; a heavy hand can leave them rubbery and practically inedible. But those who can sear a scallop to golden perfection — keeping its light balance while bringing out its lusher tenderness — are true heroes. Rabbits are delicious, so delicious that some people believe their cuteness is meant to discourage us from eating them. Their close resemblance is the reason rabbit is often prepared in similar fashion soups and stews to chicken.

While crab can be briny and one-note on its own, variations like Dungeness and blue crabs can be just as rich and flavorful as lobster when prepared well. Crab might need a little more help to become something special all on its own than lobster. Salmon is decadent, with some cuts as thick as a prime rib. It appears on both fast-food dollar menus and tasting menus alike.

Lobster is sweet, buttery, and luxurious. Lobster tails have long been considered the prize, but lobster fans have also come to realize that claws, while having a different, more tender texture, are just as delicious and valuable.

On that scale, lobster is infinitely less work and less mess than a crab, and tastier and smoother in texture than shrimp. Lamb can be tricky to prepare. There are lamb kebabs, lovingly dusted with whatever spices your culture prizes most. There are many different cuts of pork, and they hold an entire world of possibilities to explore.

There's the simple pleasure of the pork chop; the lushness of fatty pork belly; the fork-tender, velvety quality of a slow-cooked shoulder. You can sweeten pork with baked apples, spice it with chilies, enrich it with brown sugar and barbecue sauce. The true beauty of pork is that it can be whatever you want or need it to be, plus it has more natural flavor that other similarly versatile meats. In this case, the salty-sweet lick of bacon and the smokiness of sausage pushed cured pork ahead of its fresh counterpart.

Bacon has convinced many to renounce vegetarianism or bend the rules of their religion for just a bite. Chorizo, a salty, spicy flavor bomb, is just as good. Sliced salami, from finnocchiona with fennel to felino salt, peppercorns, white wine , is the jewel of any good charcuterie plate. The chicken is not a majestic bird by any stretch of the imagination. She does not soar through the sky and represent freedom like the eagle.

Tender cuts are those that have very little connective tissue and come from a little-used muscle. By Amy Hatfield March 01, Categories Wild Eats. Tags Amy Hatfield. Sign Me Up! Join other outdoor enthusiasts who already get great content delivered right to their inbox. If you don't want to bring your iPad into the bathroom, we can send you a magazine subscription for free! Popular Stories.

The process begins with a breakdown of the proteins in the meat. At a higher temperature, the collagen starts to contract and eventually becomes gelatin, which is a softer form of cooked collagen. At this point, the meat cut loses a significant amount of moisture. Some people have a habit of classifying the quality of meat based on its tenderness.

Tough meat can also have a high quality because, after pressure cooking, these parts become very delicious since they have become tender and can absorb a lot of the spices and herbs used for cooking. However, tough meat cuts cook longer than tender meats. Since meat loses moisture when cooked for longer periods, you can ensure enough liquids are added to ensure the texture is not too tough after cooking.

Another reason some meat cuts are tender is the age of the animal that has been slaughtered. Younger animals have tender meat when compared to older animals. Butchers intentionally slaughter younger animals to get tender meats for sale.

Cows are generally slaughtered when they are matured because the butcher can get more meat from the carcass. The meat from cows has a varying degree of tenderness depending on the part of the cow it was cut. However, pork meat is usually tender because pigs are slaughtered when they are younger, compared to the age of cows are slaughtered. If you are in the market for tender meat, you can consider buying pork. In conclusion, the tenderness or toughness of meat cuts depends on the collagen content in the meat, the age of the animal and the parts from which the meat is cut for sale.

Also, the cooking time can influence the texture of meat regardless of how it feels before cooking. Pressure cooking meat is suitable for tough and tender meat cuts, which can also be cooked using different methods such as boiling, steam roasting, or braising. Free Pressure Cooking Tips. We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Subscribe To Email List. Share via. Facebook Messenger. Copy Link. Powered by Social Snap.