Abstract:Paprikas were soaked in 90% (V/V) ethanol to extract capsaicinoids by using ultrasonic and microwave assisted extraction (UMAE). Based on the results of single factor experiments, the optimized extraction condition were gotten with orthogonal tests: the ultrasonic power of 50 W, the microwave power of 240 W, the solid- solvent ratio of 120 (g/mL), the microwave time of 480 s, the paprikas particle size of 80 mesh, and the extracting time twice. The present study obtained an extraction rate of 84.52%. Compared with the conventional water bath extraction method, UMAE has the advantages of shorter extraction time and higher efficiency, which may be related to the effect of UMAE on destroying cellular structure of paprika and thus making capsaicinoids into the extractant.