Influence of pulsed electric field and glycerol pretreatments on freeze-thaw process and quality of white radish

Abstract

This study focused on the effects of pulsed electric field (PEF) and glycerol (G) pretreatments on the quality of freeze-thawed white radishes. The optimal PEF intensity, frequency, and treatment time were 800 V/cm, 5 Hz, and 0.1 s, respectively. The liquid-solid ratio of the G impregnation pretreatment was 1:20 (w/w). The PEF, G, and PEF + G pretreatments accelerated the phase transition during the freeze-thaw process. Combination of PEF and G pretreatments decreased juice loss by 90.37 % and ascorbic acid loss by 59.3 % in thawed samples. The pretreatment also optimized the texture and color properties of the thawed samples. The low-field nuclear magnetic resonance results demonstrated that PEF pretreatment increased the water-holding capacity of the samples after thawing. The microstructure of the PEF + G-pretreated sample was the most homogeneous. These results revealed a potential method for preventing quality deterioration freeze-thawed vegetables and fruits using PEF and G pretreatment.