Abstract: In order to select the appropriate cooking method and the suitable delivery condition for cooked green pepper, nutritional quality and nitrite content of green pepper were measured and analyzed. Green pepper was cooked by four traditional cooking methods including stir-frying, steaming, boiling and microwaving, and then subjected to simulated commercial cold chain distribution at 4 ℃. The contents of nutrients including reductive VC and total phenolics, antioxidant activity (DPPH radical scavenging capacity and FRAP) and nitrite content of green pepper after the cooking and distribution process (cooked peppers were reheated after 0, 1, 4, 8, 12 and 24 h distribution) were investigated. Pulp hardness was selected as an evaluation parameter for consistent cooking degree. Results showed that all four cooking methods could significantly decrease reductive VC content, which showed a true retention value of 76.3%?84.0% after cooking. Cooking could increase total phenolics content and antioxidant activity, and TR levels of total phenolics, DPPH value, and FRAP value were 97.7%?130.6%, 156.76%?203.79%, 156.94%?172.53%, respectively after cooking. Cooking could markedly decrease nitrite content by 6%?18%, which was benefit for human health. Boiling treatment resulted in a 22.06% loss of soluble solids content, while other cooking methods provided good retention of soluble solids. No significant difference was observed among the effects of four cooking methods on reductive VC content. Stir-frying could result in a more significant increase in total phenolic content than the other three cooking methods. Steaming and boiling could lead to a more significant increase in antioxidant activity compared to microwaving and stir-frying, while boiling provided the largest reduction in nitrite content among these cooking methods. In a word, steaming treatment could better keep the nutritional quality of green pepper, and significantly reduce nitrite content. Therefore, in the case of green peppers, steaming treatment was recommended as the most suitable cooking treatment. During 24 h simulated distribution, the nutrient quality of green pepper decreased over time, but nitrite content showed the opposite trend. The rate of change in the nutritional quality of green pepper cooked by steaming and microwaving treatment was relatively low, and so these cooking methods were suitable for green peppers used in the process of simulated distribution. Nutrient contents showed a dramatical decrease during the first 8 h, and nitrite content showed a significant increase after delivered for 24 h. It is concluded that steaming and microwaving are suitable for cuisine with green pepper. The delivery time of cuisine with green pepper should not be more than 24 h and attention should be paid to nutrient preservation within the first eight hours.

Key words: cooking, green pepper, simulated delivery, nutritional quality, nitrite