Concept
Protein Oxidation
Also known as Oxidation of proteins, Protein carbonylation
Oxidative damage to muscle proteins that stiffens texture, weakens water-holding and dulls colour.
Protein oxidation is the less-discussed twin of lipid oxidation. The same reactive oxygen that turns fat rancid also attacks proteins, forming carbonyls and cross-links that make the protein network stiffer and less able to hold water. In long-aged and dry-cured products it shows as a firmer, sometimes tougher texture, reduced juiciness and duller colour, and it runs alongside the fat oxidation rather than separately from it.