Analysis of the juice and water losses in salted and unsalted pork samples heated in water bath. Consequences for the prediction of weight loss by transfer models

• Raw meat properties and surrounding fluid can affect weight loss;
• Differences decreased as sample temperature and sample thickness increased;
• Predicting WL from water content hinges on analyzing these effects.

This study has analyzed the effect of different factors on variation of meat weight due to juice loss, and variation of water content of pork samples heated in a water bath. The weight loss (WL) was influenced by initial water content of raw meat which can be connected to meat pH, muscle type, and by pre-salting. WL was also influenced by sample thickness and by nature of the surrounding fluid. These effects were significant at 50 °C and in thinner samples but decreased as meat temperature and sample thickness increased. WL showed no significant difference in response to prior freezing, applying a surface constraint during heating or varying meat salt content from 0.8 to 2.0%. The results were interpreted from literature knowledge on protein denaturation, contraction and, transport phenomena. Reliably predicting WL from water content variation during heating hinges on taking into account the loss of dry matter and the possible effects of meat pH, sample size or surrounding fluid.