Natural Meat Tenderizer To Cook Beef In

Tenderizing beef can sometimes make an inexpensive piece of beef more palatable, but too often commercial beef tenderizers are high in sodium. Natural meat tenderizers can flavor your meat while using enzymes to break down the meat proteins, making the meat less tough. Sometimes natural meat tenderizers are used as ingredients in commercially available meat marinades. You can easily make your own tenderizer or marinade by combining some of the fruit juices that act as natural beef tenderizers.

Bromelin

Bromelin is a protein-digesting enzyme that comes from the fruit and leaves of pineapples. Bromelin dissolves the collagen connecting proteins in beef, thereby softening the beef. You can use pineapple juice to marinate and tenderize your beef, or you can purchase bromelin separately. It is available as a supplement in health food stores. Bromelin is sometimes used to reduce inflammation or treat indigestion as well.

Ficin

Ficin is another natural enzyme that can be used as a tenderizer. Made from the sap of fig trees, ficin can be applied to your beef as either a liquid or a powder. Like bromelin and papain, ficin is a protease enzyme. Your body uses protease enzymes not only to digest proteins, but also to remove bacteria and waste from your blood.

Papain

Papain is an enzyme found naturally in the latex of papaya fruit. The latex is dried and the active enzymes are extracted. Like ficin, papain is available as a powder or a liquid. According to the University of Minnesota, one limitation of natural enzymes such as papain is their inability to penetrate deeply into the meat. They may also transfer flavors to the meat.

Alcohol

You can also use spirits, including vodka or bourbon, to tenderize meat. The alcohol acts much like the natural fruit enzymes, breaking down the meat protein. According to a Jan. 19, 2010 article by National Public Radio, alcohol can sometimes be too effective, making the meat mushy if you marinate it too long. Alcohol, too, may impart some flavor to the meat, with the exception of vodka. Plain vodka is flavorless.

Slow Cooking

Low and slow is a manta you may hear associated with cooking in a slow cooker, but for the purpose of tenderizing you should start on the highest setting and then turn down the heat over time. Slow cookers will tenderize even the toughest beef. Add broth or water to the pot along with the meat. Over time, the heat combines with the moisture to soften the meat protein.