Effects of processing parameters on immersion vacuum cooling time and physico-chemical properties of pork hams

- Agitation reduces immersion vacuum cooling time by 17.72%.
- Initial water temperatures influence cooling rates.
- We determine optimal pressure reduction rate for various initial water conditions.
- IWT 7 °C and 60 mbar/min were the best cooling condition.

The effects of agitation (1002 rpm), different pressure reduction rates (60 and 100 mbar/min), as well as employing cold water with different initial temperatures (IWT: 7 and 20 °C) on immersion vacuum cooling (IVC) of cooked pork hams were experimentally investigated. Final pork ham core temperature, cooling time, cooling loss, texture properties, colour and chemical composition were evaluated. The application for the first time of agitation during IVC substantially reduced the cooling time (47.39%) to 4.6 °C, compared to IVC without agitation. For the different pressure drop rates, there was a trend that shorter IVC cooling times were achieved with lower cooling rate, although results were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). For both IWTs tested, the same trend was observed: shorter cooling time and lower cooling loss were obtained under lower linear pressure drop rate of 60 mbar/min (not statistically significant, P > 0.05). Compared to the reference cooling method (air blast cooling), IVC achieved higher cooling rates and better meat quality.