Volumetric physical-field-thawing techniques and their combination for muscle foods: applications and innovations

In response to growing demand for convenient frozen muscle foods, various novel volumetric thawing technologies, such as microwave, radio frequency, ohmic, and high-voltage electrostatic fields, have been developed to improve thawing quality. This review introduces the fundamentals of microwave, radio frequency, ohmic, and high-voltage electrostatic fields thawing, along with their integrated uses. The focus is on factors that affect thawing efficiency and its impact on muscle food qualities, covering eating, processing, and safety qualities. Combining thawing techniques offers advantages in terms of speed and nutrition. Microwave combined with ultrasonic thawing mitigates uneven heating, radio frequency combined with magnetic nanoparticles ensures rapid and uniform thawing, and high-voltage electrostatic fields combined with still air thawing achieves efficiency. Pressure ohmic thawing technology, with its synergistic impact of high pressure, mitigates overheating issues. This review offers a detailed overview of these technologies, underscoring their limitations and potential in improving thawed muscle food quality.