Abstract
The effect of thermal treatments on the quality and aroma of watermelon juice was evaluated. Watermelon juice was pasteurized via ultrahigh temperature (UHT, pasteurized at 135°C for 2 s), low temperature long time (LTLT, pasteurized at 60°C for 30 min), and high temperature short time (HTST, pasteurized at 100°C for 5 min), respectively. UHT and LTLT reduced the total flora count and maintained the color of the pasteurized juice, while the HTST led to a significant color difference. A total of 27, 21, 22, and 21 volatiles were identified in the unpasteurized juice, UHT, LTLT, and HTST, respectively. The typical watermelon aroma, including (3Z)-3-nonen-1-ol, (E)-2-nonen-1-ol, 1-nonanal, (2E)-2-nonenal, and (E,Z)-2,6-nonadienal, was abundant in the LTLT. Consequently, the aroma of the LTLT was similar to that of unpasteurized juice. Moreover, the shelf life of the LTLT reached 101 and 14 days at 4 and 25°C, respectively. Hence, the LTLT was the best way to maintain the quality and aroma of watermelon juice.
Highlights
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) juice is welcomed all over the world [1], which provides consumers with both moisture and physiological benefits
The total flora count of the ultrahigh temperature (UHT) and low temperature long time (LTLT) was below 2.0 log CFU/mL, which met the requirement of most of the national beverage and juice regulations, while that of the high temperature short time (HTST) was higher than 2.0 log CFU/mL
The total flora count of the UHT and LTLT was below 2.0 LogCFU/mL, which met the requirement of most national safety regulations on beverage
Summary
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) juice is welcomed all over the world [1], which provides consumers with both moisture and physiological benefits. The production of watermelon juice will reduce the seasonal excess of watermelons in summer. Watermelon juice is sensitive to heat, oxygen, light, and ions [1, 8,9,10]. Several techniques have been applied to maintain the original quality and aroma of watermelon juice. The mentioned techniques were intermittent, which maintained qualities and aroma of watermelon juice at the expense of high cost and limited production capacity. In 2012, the production of watermelons reached 68,000,000 tons in China alone. Even 0.1% of the production (68,000 tons) would pose a significant challenge on the current production capacity of intermittent techniques
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