Packaging Cooked Turkey Meat Patties while Hot Reduces Lipid Oxidation

ABSTRACT Elimination of oxygen by “hot packaging” reduced the 2‐thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) value of meat patties by about 50% in control and myoglobin added, and between 30‐40% in ferrous iron added turkey patties, as compared with “cold packaging.” The TBARS values of hot and cold vacuum packaged patties were significantly lower than those of loosely packaged patties after 1 wk refrigerated storage. Most lipid oxidation in meat patties occurred at day 0, and only small changes in TBARS values were observed after 1 wk storage. Although the prooxidants in meat were major factors in promotion of lipid oxidation of cooked meat, hot packaging minimized their effects.