SENSORY AND TEXTURE QUALITY OF DRY-CURED HAM AS AFFECTED BY ENDOGENOUS CATHEPSIN-B ACTIVITY AND MUSCLE COMPOSITION

Hams were processed with standard cure adjuncts under two drying tempe ratures and analyzed after aging for 7 mo. Dried hams revealed that fl avor and texture traits were affected by moisture and nonprotein nitro gen (NPN) content and that NPN was enhanced by greater cathepsin B act ivity, lower salt levels and higher temperature. Two major defects of dry-cured ham, mushy mouthfeel and surface white film, occurred in abo ut 15% of samples. Most of these hams had abnormal NPN values and were shown to originate from meat with high enzyme activity and low protei n content. We concluded that this type of meat is prone to uncontrolle d proteolysis and related undesired traits, and to be a potential haza rd in dry-cured hams cured with less salt.