The Comparison of Microwave Thawing and Ultra-High-Pressure Thawing on the Quality Characteristics of Frozen Mango

Abstract

As one of the popular tropical fruits, mango has a relatively short shelf life due to its perishability. Therefore, post-harvest losses are always a topic of concern. Currently, freezing is a common approach to extending mango shelf life. In relation, it is also critical to select a proper thawing process to maintain its original quality attributes. In this study, microwave thawing, and ultra-high-pressure thawing were investigated, and traditional thawing methods (air thawing and water thawing) were compared as references. The thawing time, quality attributes, and sensory scores of frozen mangoes were evaluated. Compared to traditional methods, innovative thawing methods can extensively shorten thawing time. These things considered, the thawing time was further decreased with the increase in microwave power. Additionally, microwave thawing enhanced the quality of mangoes in terms of less color change and drip loss and reduced loss of firmness and vitamin C content. Microwave thawing at 300 W is recommended as the best condition for thawing mangoes, with the highest sensory score. Current work provides more data and information for selecting suitable thawing methods and optimum conditions for frozen mango to minimize losses.

Thermoultrasound and microwave-assisted freeze-thaw pretreatments for improving infrared drying and quality characteristics of red dragon fruit slices

“…Besides, the better preservation of AAC for MW3S was probably due to the combinative effects of reduced thawing time, leaching loss, drying time and thermal effects at lower microwave radiative powers [31] . Improved retention of AAC by MW-FT treatment at 300 W, attributed to rapid thawing and reduced exposure of samples to oxygen has also been reported for frozen-thawed mango [22] .…”

“…In general, the temperature-dependent increase in the ΔE for US-FTS was likely due to the exposure of the samples to elevated temperatures during pretreatments, which resulted in ascorbic acid browning, Maillard reaction, and degradation of betacyanin (Anaya-Esparza et al, 2017). Additionally, lower ΔE for high-power MW-FT might be connected to lower leaching losses and reduced thawing and drying time, which led to the preservation of colour pigments like betacyanin [31] , [30] , [22] . Colour pigments are typically susceptible to rapid degradation in the presence of light and oxygen, and exposure to aerobic conditions for an extended duration during RT-FT led to enzymatic browning and consequent increases in ΔE for RTS [19] , [5] .…”

“…The RDFS without freeze–thaw treatments served as control and were designated as CTRS. The drip loss of the pretreated samples was determined before drying according to the method outlined by Peng et al [22] .…”