Question

Match List-I with List-II regarding meat curing ingredients and their functional roles

List-I (Meat curing ingredients)	List-II (Role in meat curing)
(A) Sodium nitrate/nitrite	(I) Accelerate curing process
(B) Sodium ascorbate and erythorbate	(II) Colour fixation of meat pigments
(C) Monosodium glutamate	(III) Improves cooking yield
(D) Sodium tripolyphosphate.	(IV) Flavour enhancer.

Choose the correct answer from the options given below

• (A) - (II), (B) - (I), (C) - (IV), (D) - (III)
• (A) - (I), (B) - (II), (C) - (III), (D) - (IV)
• (A) - (I), (B) - (III), (C) - (II), (D) - (IV)
• (A) - (II), (B) - (I), (C) - (III), (D) - (IV)

Hint:

Key curing ingredient functions:
- Nitrites = Pink color fixation.
- Ascorbates = Reducing agents that accelerate curing.
- Phosphates = Increase water-holding capacity and cooking yield.
- MSG = Flavor enhancer.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Meat curing ingredients are added to raw meats to stabilize color, prevent lipid oxidation, inhibit bacterial growth, and improve the texture and yield of the finished product.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us analyze the functional role of each curing ingredient:
- (A) Sodium nitrate/nitrite: These salts act as color fixatives.
They release nitric oxide (\(\text{NO}\)), which binds to myoglobin to form nitrosomyoglobin, developing and fixing the stable red/pink color of cured meats.
This matches with (II).
- (B) Sodium ascorbate and erythorbate: These are reducing agents.
They accelerate the conversion of metmyoglobin to myoglobin and speed up the reduction of nitrite to nitric oxide, reducing processing times and minimizing residual nitrite levels.
This matches with (I).
- (C) Monosodium glutamate (MSG): This is a flavor enhancer that stimulates savory taste receptors on the tongue, enhancing the overall umami flavor profile of processed meats.
This matches with (IV).
- (D) Sodium tripolyphosphate: Phosphates increase the pH and ionic strength of meat, which increases the water-holding capacity of myofibrillar proteins.
This retains more moisture during cooking, reducing drip loss and improving cooking yield.
This matches with (III).
Therefore, the correct matching sequence is: (A) - (II), (B) - (I), (C) - (IV), (D) - (III).

Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct matching sequence corresponds to option (A).