Blanching Effects on the Quality of Jumbo Squid (Dosidicus gigas): Textural, Structural and Proteomic Analysis

This study investigated the effects of blanching temperatures (65°C, 75°C, 85°C, and 95°C) and time (3, 5, and 7 min) on the muscle quality of Jumbo Squid (Dosidicus gigas), focusing on quality attributes, protein physicochemical characteristics and quantitative proteomics. It showed that the moderate blanching conditions, particularly 85°C for 5 min, improved color, texture, and in vitro digestibility while minimizing excessive thermal damage aligning with sustainable and precision thermal processing principles. Heat treatment induced protein denaturation, as evidenced by reducing α-helix content, increasing hydrophobicity and disulfide bond formation, which collectively affected texture and water-holding capacity. Proteomic analysis further validated the observed physicochemical and textural alterations, identifying structural proteins such as actin and tropomyosin whose expression levels were significantly correlated with changes in color, texture, and cooking loss. This study provides novel insights into the structural-functional relationships of squid proteins under mild blanching conditions, contributing to the industrial standardization of squid-based ready-to-eat products.