The effects of marbling on flavour and juiciness scores of cooked beef, after adjusting to a constant tenderness

Relationship between consumer sensory scores and intramuscular fat percentage were examined using data from 3613 striploin (M. longissimus dorsi) samples. These samples were sensory tested, using consumer taste panels, after 14 days ageing. There were curvilinear relationships between sensory scores for tenderness, juiciness, like flavour and overall liking and intramuscular fat percentage, showing that these relationships plateaued between 15 and 17% intramuscular fat. High correlations (r>0.86) between sensory scores meant that the individual scores were confounded. In an attempt to minimise this confounding, flavour and juiciness scores were adjusted for an independent measure of tenderness, namely peak force. There were curvilinear relationships between flavour and juiciness scores, with peak force indicating that the relationship plateaued at the higher shear forces. After adjustment for peak force, the relationships between the flavour and juiciness scores and the intramuscular fat percentage (after adjustment for peak force) also showed positive curvilinear relationships. These plateaued at the higher levels of intramuscular fat percentage (14 and 20%, for flavour and juiciness scores, respectively). These results show that if young animals are processed in a manner where myofibrillar toughness is controlled, flavour and juiciness scores for beef samples that are served as grilled steaks to Australian consumers will tend to plateau at the higher intramuscular fat percentage.