What's Inside A Slim Jim?
Beef/Pork
The USDA has eight categories of meat quality. The Beef inside Slim Jim is from the bottom three categories. These three classes are called utility, cutter, and canner. So we’re talking about the beef from the older steers that aren’t even sold in stores. It includes the stomachs, guts and gelatin which is crushed up animal bones. Gelatin is used to reduce to fat in the end product. Since most of the beef used is scraps, gelatin is very prevalent in the “beef”. The Gelatin reduces the amount of fat in a Slim Jim compared to having Grade A meat. This meat is used for processed meat products such as Slim Jim. The chemical formula of Gelatin is C3H5N3O9.
Mechanically Separated Chicken
Mechanically separated chicken is poultry scraps (so the pieces not used for eating normally) that are crushed by a giant machine. This process results in meat resembling a bright pink substance infamously known as “Pink Slime.” This “beef” product is very controversial and fast food restaurants like McDonald’s have stopped using it in the past decade because of the controversy regarding health. The process of creating the pink slime used in Slim Jim produces ammonium hydroxide whose molecular formula is NH4OH.
Carnuaba Wax
Carnauba Wax is produced by Carnauba Palm leaves. This wax is used in many candies such as Skittles and M&M’s. The purpose for this wax is to make the Slim Jim (and the candies) shiny. This wax is comprised of mostly of p-coumaric acid whose chemical formula is C9H8O3.
Xanthan Gum
Xanthan Gum in produced as a byproduct of the Xanthomonas campestris bacteria when it ferments glucose or sucrose. Its a powdery substance that can replace gluten in baking. The purpose of adding this ingredient to the Slim JIm is similar to the purpose of gluten in baking basically it provides structure to the baked goods. The Xanthan gum also provides structure to the Slim Jim. Xanthan Gum is comprised mostly of glucose. C6H12O6 is its formula..