Marbling Food Definition

The network of fat that runs throughout a cut of meat also referred to as graining.

Marbling food definition.

Also called intramuscular fat marbling adds flavor and is one of the main criteria for judging the quality of cuts of meat. Marbling adds a lot of flavor and can be one indicator of how good the beef is. Marbling simply refers to the fat found within a cut of meat and between the muscle fibers themselves. Marbling is the white flecks of intramuscular fat in meat most notably red meat.

The intermixture of fat with lean in a cut of meat which contributes to flavor and tenderness. An appearance like that of variegated marble. The fat should be pure white and hard and the best is when it s distributed evenly throughout the entire cut of meat as in the picture above. Marbling is so named because the streaks of fat resemble a marble pattern.

It impacts the tenderness moistness and overall flavor and has become one of the most well known elements of steak evaluation. In the culinary arts the word marbling refers to white flecks and streaks of fat within the lean sections of meat. Graders evaluate the amount and distribution of marbling in the ribeye muscle at the cut surface after the carcass has been ribbed between the 12th and 13th ribs. The act process or art of coloring or staining in imitation of variegated marble.

A high quality steak will have a lot of marbling while a lean cut will have very little or no visible marbling. A term for an increase of intramuscular fat in cattle which increased beef s tenderness. The fat in lean muscle creates a marble pattern hence the name. As the meat is cooked the marbling dissolves into the meat making it tender juicy and more flavorful.

Marbling affects meat s juiciness tenderness texture and flavor attributes that determine eating experience in this case more of all the above is better.