Shredding Proteins: A Guide to Efficiently Cooking & Shredding Pork, Beef, and Chicken
Cook Your Way to Better Shredded Protein The cooking process plays a large role in the quality of your protein shreds.
A hand-pulled look to your shreds is achieved when the connective tissue of the protein is broken down during the cook cycle and the muscle fibers are pulled apart from one another. Perfecting the look and consistency of your protein shreds starts in the cook cycle. If the cook cycle is too short, or the protein isn’t held at temperature long enough, the connec- tive tissue doesn’t break down as well, leaving you with “clumpy” and mushy shreds. Left in too long, and your shreds will be very fine. The method of shredding, whether by hand or in a meat shredding machine, affects the quality of shreds minimally. If the protein isn’t cooked correctly, you won’t achieve desir- able shred quality and consistency. Methods to Efficiently Cook Proteins for Shredding In order to achieve quality, consistent shreds of your protein product, the following cook methods should be used: Cook Smaller, UniformMeat Chunks The distance between the outside of the product and the core of the product constitutes how long you must cook the product to break down the connective tissue. Generally, this means getting the product up to 83°C (180°F) and holding for a period of at least 30 minutes. Whole pieces of protein (defined as larger than 4 inches) can take upwards of 12 hours to reach an internal temperature of 180°F. The extended length of time required to cook the product can cause the outside to become “mushy.”
A hand-pulled look starts with the cook cycle. Perfect your cooking to perfect your shreds.
Whole pieces (4” or greater) take longer to cook and can produce a mushy shred.
Cut protein into smaller pieces for more efficient cooking.
The best method is to cut protein into 3 or 4 inch sized pieces to improve cooking and product consistency. The smaller diameter: • Reaches (and holds) core temperature much faster (4 hours versus 12 hours) • Increases product consistency in texture from outside to inside (due to less cook time)
• Length of shred size becomes consistent (no extended long strands) • Increases quality, overall yield, & consistency of shredded product
Fusion Tech Integrated • ftiinc.org • 309.588.4803
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