Developing an effective approach based on microwave distillation and extraction using deep eutectic solvents for multiple target analytes prepared from Eleutherococcus senticosus fruits

• DES can obtain components with different polarities from E. senticosus fruits. • Microwave technology effectively enhances mass transfer and extraction efficiency. • DES-MW-ED aligns with the ideas of sustainable and all-encompassing extraction. • Microwave technology is suitable for extracting volatile components. Deep eutectic solvents (DES) have emerged as an environmentally-friendly alternative for extracting active ingredients from botanical materials. The combination of the microwave extraction method and DES can enhance mass transfer, and DES are an excellent alternative solvent for microwave solid–liquid extraction, having a low volatility and thermal expansion coefficient. In the present study, we used the microwave-assisted extraction/distillation technique to help the upgraded DES extract essential oil fractions and unique active ingredients (different in polarity) from Eleutherococcus senticosus fruits at the same time. After single-factor trials and a Box–Behnken design (BBD) and experiments, the total yield of the three target constituents, eleutheroside B, eleutheroside E, and isofraxidin, was 30.11 ± 0.16 mg/g, that of anthocyanins was 6.29 ± 0.11 mg/g, and that of essential oil was 2.00 ± 0.13 mg/g. Compared with other methods, the proposed method ensures that DES are compatible with microwave processes and that several types of components can be extracted.