The demand for precooked, refrigerated ready-to-eat meat products is e
xpected to increase both in the catering and retail sectors. In these
products, the rate at which warmed-over flavour (WOF) develops often d
etermines their shelf life. WOF is recognized by consumers as a 'lefto
ver' or rancid taste that rapidly develops in cooked meats during refr
igerated storage and is associated with oxidative deterioration of mea
t. Several approaches can be applied to retard the development of WOF.
The purpose of this short review is to discuss how the development of
WOF can be retarded, with special emphasis on the application of anti
oxidants and optimization of processing conditions.