Mechanical pressing is a critical step in high-quality bamboo shoot processing, markedly improving product firmness and storage stability. However, the mechanisms underlying pressing-driven quality evolution remain unclear, hindering further optimization of processing strategies. Using Phyllostachys edulis shoots subjected to different pressing durations, we characterized stage-specific changes in quality attributes and integrated metabolomic and metagenomic analyses to construct a “metabolite-functional microbe-key enzyme system” interaction network that elucidates the formation mechanisms of pressing-induced quality traits. Pressing caused rapid losses of moisture and soluble sugars, continuous accumulation of fiber and total amino acids, and a transient decline followed by recovery of crude protein, with T7 (7 d) emerging as a pivotal transition point marking the shift from early compositional depletion to structural consolidation and metabolic stabilization. Differential metabolites accumulated progressively, forming a staged metabolic trajectory: elevated nucleotide-related energy metabolism at T3 (3 d), a T7 metabolic transition characterized by intensified sugar conversion, organic acid accumulation, and active cell-wall polysaccharide remodeling, enhanced carbohydrate restructuring and antioxidant metabolism at T14 (14 d), and sustained lipid and aromatic metabolite accumulation from T3 to T28 (28 d). Microbial communities displayed clear succession: facultative fermenters dominated early stages (0–3 d) by rapidly utilizing soluble carbon; from T3 to T7, Lactobacillaceae became predominant and drove the T7 transition via acidification, sugar depletion, and cell-wall remodeling; later stages involved diverse taxa promoting complex polysaccharide breakdown and secondary metabolism. Correlation analysis indicated that Lactobacillaceae, together with associated carbohydrate metabolic pathways and CAZy enzyme systems, forms a central hub coordinating quality transitions and metabolic remodeling. Quality formation peaked at T7, where Lactobacillaceae–driven metabolism orchestrates tissue restructuring and compositional changes, establishing the foundation for subsequent quality stabilization and providing guidance for optimizing pressing duration. • Pressing induced stage-specific quality shifts, with 7 d as the key turning point in compositional remodeling. • Multi-omics revealed sequential metabolic transitions and microbial succession, during pressing. • Lactobacillaceae and CAZy enzymes linkinged microbial sugar metabolism to pressing-induced quality traits.
Yang et al. (Sun,) studied this question.