As a fruit with rich nutrition and unique taste, the consumption demand of avocado has continued to grow in recent years around the world. In order to meet the diversified needs of the market, avocados are processed into a variety of finished products, including frozen avocados, avocado paste, avocado oil, etc. So what are the steps in the avocado processing process?
Different finished products require different processing steps, but no matter what the final product is, avocados must go through a series of basic processing steps before processing, mainly including the following:
- Cleaning: Thoroughly clean the dust and pesticide residues on the surface of the avocado, usually using a avocado cleaning machine.
- Peeling and pitting: Avocados have a thick skin and a large pit, so the skin and pit need to be peeled off before processing.
- Anti-oxidation treatment: Avocado pulp is rich in unsaturated fatty acids and is easily oxidized and discolored after contact with air. Therefore, after peeling and pitting, antioxidants are usually used for a short soaking to delay the oxidation process and maintain the bright green color of the pulp.
- Cut or mince: Depending on the needs of different products, the pulp will be further cut, crushed or pureed.
In addition to the above processing steps, there are also different processing steps for different processed products. For example:
1. Frozen avocado
Freezing equipment is also required to reduce the pulp temperature to below -18°C in a very short time to form tiny ice crystals and reduce tissue structure damage.
2. Avocado paste
It needs to be stirred and pureed. The pulp is roughly chopped and then pureed using a vacuum mixer.
3. Avocado oil
Avocado oil is popular because it is rich in unsaturated fatty acids. The processing is relatively complicated. In addition to the above steps, cold pressing, oil filtration and refining are also required.