High hydrostatic pressure and thermal treatments for ready-to-eat wine-marinated shrimp: An evaluation of microbiological and physicochemical qualities

• RTE wine-marinated shrimp is a commercially traditional Chinese product.
• By combining HHP treatment (550 MPa/5 min) with wine, RTE wine-marinated shrimp can be stored at 25 °C for 90 days.
• HHP-treated products had better physicochemical and sensory qualities than those of TP-treated.
• Present study can be commercially applied to RTE wine-marinated shrimp processing.

The microbiological and physicochemical changes in ready-to-eat (RTE) wine-marinated shrimp subjected to high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) and thermal processing (TP) treatments were compared. The samples were treated by HHP at 550 MPa for 5 min or TP at 85 °C for 30 min and subsequently stored at 4 °C or 25 °C for 90 days. The counts of total plate count (TPC) were initially reduced to levels below the detection limit in all treated samples, but that of the HHP-treated samples increased to 2.57 log10 CFU/g and 2.84 log10 CFU/g after storage at 4 °C and 25 °C for 90 days, respectively. No Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus were detected. The HHP-treated shrimp had significantly higher moisture (68.98%) and lower pH (6.10) than the TP-treated shrimp (66.62% for moisture and 6.16 for pH value). The HHP-treated samples had a significantly lower level of thiobarbituric-acid-reacting substances (TBARS) than TP-treated samples (P < 0.05). Compared to the HHP-treated samples, the TP-treated samples had higher L⁎, a⁎ and b⁎ values and ΔE. In addition, the HHP-treated shrimp exhibited less firmness and more elasticity than the TP-treated shrimp (P < 0.05). The HHP-treated RTE wine-marinated shrimps were of better sensory attributes than their TP-treated counterparts. The HHP-treated RTE wine-marinated shrimp showed good microbiological, physicochemical and sensory qualities, even after 90 days of storage at 25 °C. Such HHP-treated traditional products are of high economic and health importance in China.Industrial relevanceWine-marinated shrimp as a traditional dish in China is a highly perishable commodity and has limited shelf-life. In this study, RTE wine-marinated shrimps treated by combining HHP with wine showed good microbiological, physicochemical and sensory qualities even after a 90-day storage at 25 °C. Such HHP traditional products have a great economic and health significance in China. The available data are provided for the evaluation and application of HHP in the Chinese traditional dish industry, and criteria for commercial production of RTE wine-marinated shrimps with safety and high quality requirements could be established.