Shear Force. The frozen meat samples were
thawed overnight (approximately 16 h) in a cooler at
4°C. At least 3 slices (1 by 1 by 3 cm) from each sample
were cut parallel to the longitudinal orientation of the
muscle fi ber. The slices were sheared perpendicular
to the muscle fi ber orientation (Instron 5543; Instron
Corporation, Norwood, MA) with a Warner-Bratzler
shear device (Zwick Roell Group, Ulm, Baden
Wuerttemberg, Germany) and crosshead speed set
at 200 mm/min according to the research guidelines
established by American Meat Science Association
(AMSA, 1995). The maximum force measured to shear
the slices was expressed as Newtons.