Microwave Freeze Drying of Sea Cucumber Coated with Nanoscale Silver

Abstract

To develop an improved dehydration method for sea cucumber, microwave freeze drying was tested as a potential method. According to our experimental results, microwave freeze drying can reduce drying time to about half of the traditional vacuum freeze-drying process. To ensure a high degree of sterilization, a novel nanoscale silver coating technique was combined with microwave freeze drying. Microwave freeze drying combined with nanoscale silver coating treatment leads to a much lower microorganism number with no significant effect on drying efficiency and sensory quality.

Keywords:

• Drying time
• Microwave freeze drying
• Nanoscale silver
• Sea cucumber
• Sterilization

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors are grateful for the 863-HI-TECH Research and Development Program of China for supporting the research under contract No. 2006AA09Z430.