Objective To optimize the honey-frying process of Pipaye (Eriobotryae Folium, EF) and establish a quality differentiation system between raw and processed products, providing scientific evidence for standardized production and quality control of honey-fried EF. Methods The effects of five factors-honey-to-water ratio, solid-to-liquid ratio, moistening time, stir-frying temperature, and stir-frying duration were investigated through single-factor experiments. The comprehensive weights of maslinic acid, corosolic acid, oleanolic acid, ursolic acid, neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, cryptochlorogenic acid, and hyperoside were determined using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) combined with the criteria importance through intercriteria correlation (CRITIC) objective weighting method. Key process parameters (honey-to-water ratio, stir-frying temperature, and stir-frying duration) were optimized via Box-Behnken design coupled with response surface methodology (BBD-RSM) to establish the optimal honey-processing conditions for EF. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography/high-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC/HPLC) was employed to develop fingerprint profiles of raw and honey-processed EF. Component differences were compared using similarity analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), principal component analysis (PCA), and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). Additionally, correlation analysis between colorimetric values and indicator components was conducted. Results The optimized honey-processing parameters for EF were determined as follows: honey-to-water ratio of 1:1.06, solid-to-liquid ratio of 2.0:1, moistening time of 2.5 h, stir-frying temperature of 157.9 ℃, and stir-frying duration of 11.1 min. In the established fingerprint profile of triterpenic acids in EF, 12 common peaks were identified in the raw products, while nine common peaks were identified in the processed products. Among these, four peaks were assigned as maslinic acid (peak 6), corosolic acid (peak 7), oleanolic acid (peak 11), and ursolic acid (peak 12), all of which showed increased content after honey-processing. In the fingerprint profile of organic acids, 11 common peaks were identified in the raw products, and 12 common peaks were found in the processed products. Four of these peaks were identified as neochlorogenic acid (peak 1), chlorogenic acid (peak 3), cryptochlorogenic acid (peak 4), and hyperoside (peak 11)-all of which decreased in content after honey-processing. The colorimetric values (L^*, a^*, b^*) of the honey-processed loquat slices showed a significant positive correlation with the content of triterpenic acids, and a significant negative correlation with the content of organic acids and flavonol glycosides. Conclusion The AHP-CRITIC weighting method combined with BBD-RSM can effectively balance multiple indicators. The honey-frying process for EF is stable and feasible. Integrating fingerprints with chemometric methods precisely characterizes quality changes before and after processing, offering evidence for enhanced quality control standards.

Eriobotryae Folium  /  honey-fried Eriobotryae Folium  /  triterpenoid acids  /  principal component analysis  /  orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis  /  AHP-CRITIC  /  Box-Behnken design-response surface methodology  /  maslinic acid  /  corosolic acid  /  oleanolic acid  /  ursolic acid  /  neochlorogenic acid  /  chlorogenic acid  /  cryptochlorogenic acid  /  hyperoside