Nutritional profile of raw, roasted, and braised dark chicken meat obtained from supermarkets across the U.S.

Date

2014-05

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Abstract

Nutrient values reported in the poultry products section of the USDA Handbook No. 8-5, “Composition of Foods…Raw, Processed, Prepared,” were last updated in 1979 for raw and roasted dark chicken meat and skin and does not contain data for braised dark chicken meat and skin. The objectives of this study were to determine the nutritional composition and nutrient retention of separable lean meat and skin from raw, braised and roasted chicken thigh and drum, to update data entries in the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference (SR), and to compare current data to previously reported values. Ready-to-cook thighs and drums (skin-on) were obtained from twelve retail stores across the U.S. Raw, braised and roasted drums and thighs were each dissected into separable lean, skin and fat, and cartilage and bone. Proximate composition, B vitamins, minerals, fatty acid profiles, cholesterol, amino acid content, carotenoid composition, choline, retinol concentration, vitamin E and D content of the separable lean of the drum and thigh, and skin were determined by qualified laboratories using valid methods and quality assurance. Raw thigh and drum meat, and skin had higher moisture and lower fat, protein, and cholesterol compared to cooked products. Cooking concentrated B vitamins with the exception of B12 in the skin. No differences in B vitamins or Se content were noted among raw, braised, roasted thigh and drum on a wet matter basis. On a total solids basis only about 60% of the B12 was retained in roasted drum. Braising lowered ash, protein, and niacin content in skin compared to roasting. Cholesterol content of braised and roasted thigh and drum meat were similar (P > 0.05) with mean cholesterol content in thigh meat of 140.8 mg/100 g and drum of 132.0 mg/100 g. The cooked thigh and drum contained less than 0.05 g trans-fat/100 g lean and about 0.35 g of trans fat/100 g skin. Potassium was the most prevalent mineral in all parts and increased from raw to cooked. For drum and thigh lean and skin, the top five fatty acids present at the highest concentration were palmitic, palmitoleic, stearic, oleic and linoleic in which oleic concentration was highest in all parts. In comparison to lean meats, skin had the highest oleic acid content with 15.8, 15.8, and 15.4 g/100 g skin for raw, roasted, and braised, respectively. Skin had the lowest percentage of all amino acids except for glycine when compared to lean meat. Separable thigh lean was higher in amino acid percentages when differences were noted between drum and thigh lean. Retinol was highest in the skin for each cooking treatment while values for drum and thigh lean were similar. Vitamin E and D were also highest in raw skin. Roasted and braised thigh lean had higher vitamin D content than roasted and braised drum lean. Total choline was highest in raw drum lean and lowest in raw skin at 56.7 mg/100 g and 28.3 mg/100 g, respectively. For all parts, phospatidylcholine was present at the highest concentration of the choline metabolites with 3,536, 3,583, and 1,541 nmol/g. Lutein was highest in all parts for carotenoids with raw thigh lean containing the most and roasted skin the least. Raw thigh lean had higher concentrations of each carotenoid in comparison to raw drum lean except for cis-lutein/zeaxanthin.
Updated nutritional data for dark chicken meat and skin available in SR number 24 will support nutrition monitoring, food policy development and education.

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Keywords

Chicken, Nutrition

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