Hot water treatment increased the microbial quality of beef trimmings
over time during refrigerated storage. Compared to non-treated
trimmings, HWT allowed for lower microbial counts in trimmings containing
15% and 35% fat, indicating that fat level did not affect microbial
load. For trimmings subjected toHWT, oxidative stability over 7 days of
refrigerated storage was not affected. In addition, oxidative stability of
patties made from ground, HWT trimmings were no different than patties
made fromuntreated trimmings, suggesting that HWT hasminimal
impact on the oxidative quality of trimmings and ground beef over time