Research Progress on the Effect of Different Processing Techniques on Watermelon Juice Flavor
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Abstract:
Watermelon is very popular with consumers owing to its high nutritional value and excellent sensory quality. As a big watermelon-producing country, the development and application of watermelon products, especially watermelon juice, have a broad prospect in China. As a high-quality raw material for juice processing, watermelon has a low acidity and high water activity thereby making it susceptible to microbial contamination. Therefore, the shelf life of watermelon juice is often very short. The application of traditional thermal processing technology, such as pasteurization, can extend the shelf life of watermelon juice to a certain extent. However, as a heat-sensitive fruit, the nutritional quality and sensory characteristics of watermelon juice are also easily damaged due to heating. In comparison, non-thermal processing technologies, including high hydrostatic pressure (HHP), high pressure carbon dioxide (HPCD), ultrasound, radiation sterilization, high-intensity pulsed electric field (HIPEF) and membrane technology, show greater advantages in the application of watermelon juice. Moreover, according to the existing research, most processing technologies focus more on sterilization and enzyme inactivation effects, with little attention to the impact on the flavor of watermelon juice. In order to understand better the flavor of watermelon juice and promote its industrial development, this paper provides an overview of the characteristic flavor of watermelon juice and the influences of different processing technologies on the flavor. Furthermore, a series of methods/means for improvements are proposed for preserving the flavor of processed watermelon juice.
