Tenderness of ovine semimembranosus: Is collagen concentration or solubility the critical factor?

The concentration and heat-dependent solubility of collagen were measured in the semimembranosus (36 animals) and, for comparison, the gluteus (108) muscles of sheep aged 4 months to 5 years. For both muscles, solubility declined with age but concentration remained unchanged. Compared to gluteus and other major ovine muscles, the semimembranosus had markedly insoluble collagen at a relatively low concentration. To assess the relative importance of collagen concentration and solubility on tenderness/texture for a muscle with this profile, the semimembranosus muscles contralateral to those used for collagen analysis were cooked to an endpoint of 75°C and assessed by sensory panel and Warner-Bratzler shear tests. The panel data showed that collagen concentration was the more important determinant of eating quality, whereas shear data were more clearly related to solubility. The implications of the sensory results are discussed for muscles that contain a different collagen profile.