Changes of Ultrasonic Parameters as a Tool to Determine the Influence of Cooking in Pork Loin Samples

This paper describes a non-invasive ultrasound method to analyze and develop the usefulness of ultrasound testing of both raw and cooked samples of pork loins (with different cooking conditions), and in different measurement conditions (frozen and thawed). Besides studying ultrasound pulse velocity (UPV), other ultrasound parameters were included such as FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) and attenuation, neither of which being commonly studied in this kind of work. The experimental study was carried out on pork loin pieces with 3 cm thickness, using a pair of transducers in through-transmission mode (frequency range up to 100 kHz), and another one in pulse-echo mode (frequency range up to 1000 kHz). The ultrasound parameters studied showed good discrimination between samples in the different conditions of measurement and cooking. These results consolidate ultrasound testing as a non-destructive method well suited to this kind of meat product, both raw and cooked.