What does «carne» mean in Spanish?
- In terms of food, that of any animal used as human food. A piece of meat, as it comes from the retail market, comprises muscle tissue, connective tissue, fat and bone. The glands and edible organs are usually also called meat. The main types of meat are beef, veal, pork, lamb and mutton. Of the millions of people who eat meat, few are capable of appreciating the physical structure and chemical composition of a slice of bacon, a piece of roast beef or a plate of braised lamb. Muscle, for example, is all meat. It is composed of bundles of muscle fibers or cells that are held together by connective tissue. The bundles are called fascicles and the surrounding connective tissue is called perimysium. The size of the bundles varies according to the different muscles of the same animal and according to the different animal species. The thickness of the fiber, the size of each fascicle and the perimysium determine the quality of the meat. If the fibers and bundles are small and thin, the meat is thinner. Connective tissue can be of two kinds: yellow and white. Yellow contains a protein, elastin, which is not softened by cooking. White, on the other hand, composed mainly of collagen, is softened by the same process. The total amount of connective tissue in a given portion of meat depends on the exercise of the muscles that go into it and the age of the animal.