MEAT COOKERY WEBQUEST

Foods and Nutrition 9

Developed by Scotti Stephen

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Overview

When a person cooks for themselves, or for family, and/or friends, they want to serve a meat dish that is appealing, very tasty, as well as nutritious. They do not want to have the freshly-cooked piece of meat resembling shoe leather! So in order to accomplish this task, it is very important to have a basic understanding of the principles of meat cookery.

In this assignment, students will be able to:

  • Identify the structure of beef and the nutrients found in meat
  • Discuss the factors which determine the tenderness of meat
  • Determine the location of the cut of meat on the carcass and the suitable cooking method(s) for any particular cut
  • Apply this information when either selecting the best buy for the dollar or cooking meat for a meal
  • Summarize the facts of beef cookery in a well-constructed web

Resources:

– search for beef

Beef Chart handout, Beef Cookery Dictionary, All About Beef PP

The World of Food, pp. 356-383

Assignment I: Gathering Information

Using the Internet websites listed on the previous page, please answer the following questions.

The Structure of Beef

1. Strands of fibrous tissue, called ______hold together the muscle fibres.

2. The thin tough elastic strands of meat, called ______, soften and turn into gelatin during cooking. They are usually found on ______animals.

3. The thicker strands of meat, called ______are resistant to tenderizing with heat, moisture or other methods. They are usually found on ______animals. Usually this part is trimmed away before the meat is cooked.

Inspection and Grading

4. Federal inspectors mark the carcass with a Meat Inspection Stamp reading ______. This stamp tells the consumer that ______.

5. The fat distributed in the lean muscle is called ______.

6. The grade of meat is based on ______, ______, and ______.

7. What are the differences between Grades A, B, D, and E? Explain.

8. Explain the difference between A, AA, and AAA and Prime grades of meat.

Nutrients in Beef

9. Meat contains ______protein because it comes from an ______source. This type of protein can be used immediately for ______, ______, and ______.

10. Meat is also an important source of the ______vitamins, such as ______, ______, ______, and ______. These vitamins aid in the ______and ______. Animal products are the only reliable source for Vitamin ______.

11. Iron is an essential mineral which is found in meat products. It is important for ______

12. Another important mineral which is found in meat products is ______.

Buying Meat

13.The amount of bone in a cut of beef influences the amount of meat one buys per person.

  • One serving = ______lb. or ______g per person of boneless meat.
  • One serving = ______lb. or ______g per person or meat with small amount of bone (steaks, roasts)
  • One serving = ______lb. or ______g per person of meat with large amount of bone (spareribs, short ribs).

14. When shopping for meat, consider:

15.A variety of meat is available in Canada. Complete the following chart.

Type of meat / Animal source / Age of animal / Color of meat & fat
Beef
Calf
Pig
Sheep
Sheep

16.What conclusions can be drawn from knowing the colour of the meat and the colour of the fat?

17.List three factors which influence the cost of meat?

Beef Cuts

18. Go to , click on to the teacher’s name and then Calendar. Find the link Beef Chart. Print a copy. Then label the Canadian wholesale /primal cuts of beef. Determine from your research which parts of the carcass are tender, medium tender, and less tender.

19. In chart form, list the wholesale cut in the left column, and in the right column, identify examples of retail cuts which come from each part of the carcass.

Wholesale Cut / Examples of Retail Cuts

20. Identify the five factors which influence the tenderness of a cut of meat?

21. How can the shape of a bone indicate the degree of tenderness in a cut of meat? Explain.

Cooking Beef

22.What is the main reason meat is cooked?

23.Explain two rules to follow when cooking meat.

24. Explain the differences between moist heat and dry heat.

25. Give three examples of dry heat methods and three examples of moist heat methods of cooking meat.

26. How does moist heat tenderize less tender cuts?

27. What are two others ways meat is tenderized? Give examples for each.

28. For which cuts would you use dry heat and which cuts would you use moist heat to cook the meat successfully?

29. Since meat is considered to be an unsafe food, it is important to know how to store it properly. Explain how to store the following forms of meat properly.

  • Fresh meat
  • Cured and ready to eat
  • Frozen meat
  • Canned meat
  • Leftover meat

Assignment II: Practical Application

Now that you have gained some knowledge on beef cuts and how to cook them, it is time to apply that information to some practical situations. For each scenario listed below, determine which cut of meat would be a better buy for the number of people. Keep in mind the cut of meat, the amount of bone in the cut, the location of the cut on the carcass, and the method of cooking. You willalso need to remember the yield per serving in order to calculate the cost per serving, as well as the conversion of pounds to kilograms!

For example, regular ground beef costs $4.83 per kilogram. If I am needing to feed four people . . . .

1 lb. = 4 servings1kg = 2.2 lb.

Set up a ratio.

4/1 lb. = ?/2.2 kg or 4 X2.2 = 8.8 servings/kg

$4.83/kg divided by 8.8 servings/kg =

The answer is .55 cents/kg/serving

A second method would be to first convert the cost/kg to cost/lb.

$4.83/2.2 lb. = $2.19/lb.

4 servings = 1 lb.

$2.19/4 = .55 cents/serving

  1. Mike and Jeff have just moved into their first apartment and have decided to have a barbecue and invite six friends over for dinner. They would like to cook steak and baked potatoes as the guests are bringing the rest of the food. Which kind of steak would you recommend for barbecuing, based upon your knowledge of the cuts of meat, cooking methods, and the cost/serving? Explain your answer clearly.

Rib Eye Steak - $22.12/kg or Eye of the Round Steak - $11.00/kg

2. Susan is going to surprise her family by making stew for dinner for her family of six. The recipe calls for lean stewing beef. However, she has found some beef tenderloin in the freezer that she feels she could use instead. Which meat would you recommend to Susan as the best choice for the recipe? Hint: Do not just consider the cost per serving! Explain your answer clearly.

Lean stewing beef - $8.36/kg

Beef Tenderloin - $ 22.00/kg

3. Nancy and Bob are newlyweds and have decided to invite both sets of parents over for dinner for the first time. They want to make a good impression, yet at the same time they have to consider their tight budget. They have narrowed down the menu choices to either serving lasagna or beef ribs. What choice would you recommend to this couple? How would you cook both types of meat? Explain your answer clearly.

Lean ground beef - $5.49/kg

Ribs – $7.25/kg

Assignment III: Summary

The last part of this webquest is meant to summarize your knowledge about beef cookery.

Using Word, PowerPoint, or any other FREE software available, create a one-page web summarizing the main ideasof beef cookery. In completing this web, you may wish to work in small groups. Gather your ideas first and then start to web.

The finished product should be visually appealing, and group members should be prepared to share their web with the rest of the class. Therefore, one must be prepared to EXPLAIN their web!

Evaluation

Please find attached, on the following page, a copy of the rubric which will be used to evaluate your understanding of the principles of meat cookery. It is a group assignment so it is important that all members contribute to this project.

BEEF COOKERY WEB EVALUATION

NAMES OF GROUP MEMBERS ______

DATE ______CLASS ______

CATEGORY / EXCEPTIONAL (4) / WELL DONE (3) / SATISFACTORY (2) / LACKING (1)
CONTENT /
  • Very accurate
  • Facts were detailed
  • Excellent explanation of key points
/
  • Mostly accurate
  • A few errors or omissions
  • Good explanation of key points
/
  • Somewhat accurate
  • More than a few errors or omissions
  • Fair explanation of key points
/
  • Inaccurate information
  • Misleading; gave the audience the wrong facts
  • Little explanation of key points

ORGANIZATION /
  • Extremely well organized
  • Logical, web easy to follow
  • Flowed smoothly from one idea to another
  • Organization enhanced the effectiveness of the web
/
  • Well organized
  • Web fairly easy to follow
  • Flowed from one idea to another
  • Ideas at times were unclear
/
  • Somewhat organized
  • Web ideas were hard to follow
  • Transitions were not always smooth
  • Ideas were unclear
/
  • Disorganized; choppy, confusing
  • Web very difficult to follow
  • No smooth transitions between ideas
  • Ideas were not connected

MECHANICS /
  • Free of spelling and grammatical errors
/
  • One spelling and/or grammatical error
/
  • Two or more spelling and/or grammatical errors
/
  • Spelling and/or grammatical errors caused distraction

PRESENTATION /
  • All members were well prepared and knowledgeable
  • Excellent pace, excellent volume
  • Excellent eye contact from all members
/
  • Most group members were prepared and knowledgeable
  • Good pace; good volume
  • Good eye contact from most members
/
  • Some group members were prepared and knowledgeable
  • Fair pace; some members spoke too quickly; hard to hear at times
  • Some eye contact from the members
/
  • Group members winged the presentation; little knowledge evident
  • Members did not pace themselves; difficult to hear
  • No eye contact; did not look up during their presentation

TOTAL MARKS - /16

COMMENTS –

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