Abstract:Taking the eutectic point as the final freezing temperature, this paper investigated the effects of different freezing methods (-18, -40, -80 ℃) on the color, thawing loss rate, water content, tenderness, texture characteristics, water migration and microstructure of hand grab mutton. The results showed that compared among different freezing methods, the L* value of samples frozen at -80 ℃ was significantly lower than that of samples frozen at -40 ℃ and -18 ℃, and had the lowest thawing loss rate (0.20 ± 0.00) and the highest moisture content (0.49 ± 0.01). When the freezing rate is high, the shear force value (508.16 ± 50.03), hardness value (1 422.05 ± 111.63), chewability (782.32 ± 37.90), relaxation times T21 and T22, the proportion of M22 (11.30 ± 0.04) were low, the proportion of cohesiveness (0.69 ± 0.03), springiness (0.52 ± 0.03), resilience (0.24 ± 0.00) and the proportion of M21 were high, and the degree of microstructure damage were small. The above indicators of hand grab mutton frozen at -80 ℃ were closest to those of unfrozen hand grab mutton. In conclusion, a higher freezing rate can reduce the thawing loss rate of hand grab mutton, maintain higher moisture and myofibril integrity, reduce the quality decline caused by freezing and thawing, maintain the texture and tenderness of meat products, which is conducive to the quality fidelity of hand grab mutton. Taking the eutectic point as the final freezing temperature, the freezing process lasted a short time, which can provide practical guidance for the cost control of industrial production process. This study provides some enlightenment for the cold processing of hand grab mutton.