Abstract: Vacuum pre-cooling treatment that can immediately remove the respiration heat from postharvest vegetables, extending the shelf life and improving the storage quality of sweet broad pea. In order to explore the optimal conditions of vacuum pre-cooling treatment, orthogonal tests were adopted. The effects of different processing technology on product quality were evaluated along with the effects of two major factors (end-temperature and pre-wetting) on the storage quality of sweet broad pea. Using non-vacuum pre-cooling as the control, the change in physiological and biochemical parameters of samples in both groups was compared. Similarly, the change of surface and internal temperatures as well as vacuum pressure was recorded. Weight loss rate, chlorophyll content, ascorbic acid content and sensory index were used as the major parameters. Results showed that vacuum pre-cooling treatment could slow down the decrease of vitamin C and chlorophyll contents effectively. Therefore, when end-temperature was set at 5 ℃, the storage quality of the pre-wetted samples was the best. Vacuum precooling can significantly extend the shelf life of sweet broad pea.

Key words: vacuum pre-cooling, sweet broad pea, storage quality