Impact of Ohmic Heating and High Pressure Processing on Qualitative Attributes of Ohmic Treated Peach Cubes in Syrup.

Stabilization of ohmic pretreated peach cubes () in syrup, representative of semifinished fruit products, was finalized by ohmic heating (OHM) and high pressure processing (HPP), proposed respectively as thermal and nonthermal pasteurization, in comparison to a conventional pasteurization treatment (DIM). The samples were then studied in terms of histological, physical (dimensional distribution, tenderometry, texture, viscosity of syrup and colour), chemical (total phenolic and ascorbic acid content), and sensorial (triangle test) properties. Severe modifications of the cell walls were observed in -DIM and -OHM samples, with swelling and electroporation, respectively. From chemical analyses, significant reduction of ascorbic acid and simultaneous increase of total phenolics content were observed for -DIM and -OHM, probably in relation to the cell wall damages. -HPP showed the best preservation of the dimensional characteristics and hardness, followed by -OHM and -DIM. In addition, textural and colour parameters evidenced similar results, with -HPP as the less different from . Finally, the sensorial analysis confirmed -HPP and -OHM samples as the most similar to as well as the most appreciated in terms of colour and consistency.