Thermal treatments and their influence on physicochemical properties of sea cucumbers: a comprehensive review

Summary Sea cucumber is consumed as a traditional, luxury, medicinal and health‐benefit seafood product. Thermal treatment is a necessary step in sea cucumber processing. The quality of cooked sea cucumbers is affected by heating temperature, heating time, heating degree and heating pressure. Furthermore, the storage stability and shelf‐life of mature products are influenced by the processing methods. The loss of nutrients, changes in textural properties and apparent morphology of goods affect consumer preferences. Although some machining techniques, such as high‐pressure and high‐temperature treatments, have been applied to shorten the processing time, negative effects during storage cannot be ignored. In this review, the physical and chemical changes to sea cucumbers during different thermal treatments are compared and summarised, and future work is described. These future efforts are expected to provide suitable thermal treatment and promote innovation in sea cucumber processing technology.