Video: https://www.tiktok.com/@distilledscience/video/7481083440549416222
Transcript
That's not blood. It's meat juice, aka purge, which is mostly water and a protein called myoglobin. The protein that makes blood red is similar, but it's called hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is four times larger, and it's used to transport oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body, whereas myoglobin's function is to store that oxygen in your muscles for future use. Blood coagulates. It's thick, and it's actually used in some cuisines as a thickener. Meat juice is thin. You may have seen myoglobin show up on a blood test. chart. But that's because we check for it as a sign of muscle damage where it leaks into the blood stream. When an animal is slaughtered, it's hung up until just about all the blood drains out. Because our circulatory system is sort of like a whole series of tubes and it drains pretty easily, whereas the myoglobin of the muscles stays put. And as you cook meat, it turns from red to either a brown or gray color. A rare steak is not a bloody steak. It's a myoglobular steak? Here are sometimes when you're more likely to see this sort of spurting meat juice action. One, if the meat is vacuum sealed or tightly wrapped, which puts pressure on that muscle, so it you cut into it. Two, the meat was frozen, forming ice crystals inside, breaking down some of that structure and making it easier for the liquid to escape when it's cut after thawing. Three, it's leaner beef with more liquid and less fat. Four, it was more finely ground, releasing more fluid from the muscle. And five, it was prepackaged versus freshly ground, giving more time for the liquid to separate out from the muscle fibers. Most of these are not reasons to avoid ground beef, or the reason why it's cheap. Ground beef is generally cheaper by the pound than other types of beef because it's easier to process in bulk by machine. over beef trimmings rather than the choice or cuts. My favorite way to eat it is as a nice, savory protein base for my mushroom risotto recipe.
Additional notes
#stitch with @catherineharris019 Meat will also turn brown when exposed to air. This is the myoglobin being exposed to oxygen and turning into “metmyoglobin.” This is perfectly healthy to eat! Meat sealing video from @ GreatLakesPrepping #science #distilledscience #meat #kitchenscience Myoglobin vs Hemoglobin: DOI:10.1007/s10867-021-09588-3
References
- Myoglobin vs Hemoglobin. DOI: 10.1007/s10867-021-09588-3, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10867-021-09588-3
- Stitch source @catherineharris019 and meat sealing video from @GreatLakesPrepping mentioned in caption; direct source URLs not listed in workbook.