Question

What effect does cooking have on the original cell density (OCD) of meat? pls expain in as much detail as possible

Answer 1

An animal cell is greatly filled with water. The more the water content in the cell, the more dense it is. Often the cell density is denoted as viable cell density which is the number of living cells per unit volume.

The effect of heat on cell density can be explained by the 'Bulk Density Theory', which states that fat (meat cells in this case) has relatively lower density compared to a heat-denatured protein in cooked meat. So, as the percentage of fat increases, the overall density of the meat decreases. As bulk density decreases within a given bite of meat, the meat become more tender. The matrix density of meat decreases as the temperature raises. Usually for meat and meat products the density varies from 0.5-1g/ml (including mass and bulk density). Bulk density theory also called as Bite theory, suggests that within a given bite-size portion of cooked meat, the occurrence of marbling (Marbled meat is meat, especially red meat, that contains various amounts of intramuscular fat, giving it an appearance similar to a marble) pattern decreases the density, lowering the bulk density by replacing protein with lipid. The decrease in bulk density is accompanied by an increase in tenderness.