Abstract: To determine the optimal gelatinization temperature and residence time parameters for the pyrolysis of food waste, this study used unsieved food waste as raw material and applied a medium-to-low temperature, oxygen-limited gelatinization pyrolysis technology. A series of experiments were conducted with varying gelatinization temperatures (150, 175, 200, 225, 250, and 275 ℃) and residence times (1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, and 3.5 h), to analyze the effects of these parameters on product yield, physicochemical properties, nutrient content, and seed germination index. The results showed that within the set process parameters, with the increase of gelatinization temperature and residence time, the yield of gelatinization products of kitchen waste showed a significant downward trend, the moisture content gradually decreased, while the ash content of the products continued to rise. Regarding the physicochemical properties and biological indicators of the gelatinization products of kitchen waste, the pH, electrical conductivity, total organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, seed germination index and nutrient content of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium of the products all showed a trend of first increasing and then decreasing. In contrast, the H/C, O/C and C/N ratios of the products showed a trend of first decreasing and then increasing. The above indicators showed obvious turning points at a gelatinization temperature of 200 ℃ and a residence time of 2.5 h, indicating that the total organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, total nutrient content and the content of trace elements such as calcium, magnesium, copper, zinc, iron and manganese of the gelatinization products of kitchen waste reached their peaks at this point. Specifically, the total organic carbon reached 531.80 g/kg and 632.53 g/kg respectively at a gelatinization temperature of 200 ℃ and a residence time of 2.5 h; the cation exchange capacity was 203.29 cmol/kg and 203.38 cmol/kg respectively under the above conditions; the total nutrient content was 106.18 g/kg and 114.93 g/kg respectively. At the same time, the seed germination index of the gelatinization products of kitchen waste was the highest at a gelatinization temperature of 200 ℃ and a residence time of 2.5 h, reaching 81.86% and 72.37% respectively, indicating that the products prepared under these conditions showed good stability and reliable biological safety. Using response surface methodology and regression models, the significant synergistic effects of gelatinization temperature and residence time on the properties of the pyrolyzed product were further revealed. The optimized conditions predicted by the response surface model were 201 ℃ and 2.47 h, corresponding to predicted TOC and TNC values of 622.46 and 114.06 g/kg, respectively. However, considering operational feasibility within the experimental parameter range, the gelatinization temperature was adjusted to 200 ℃ and residence time to 2.5 h for validation. The measured values deviated from the predicted values by 10.04 and 0.84 g·kg^-1 for TOC and TNC, respectively: deviations within acceptable limits. Therefore, 200 ℃ and 2.5 h were identified as the optimal process parameters for food waste gelatinization pyrolysis in this study. The resulting gelatinized product demonstrated excellent performance in terms of physicochemical properties, nutrient enrichment, environmental safety, and structural characteristics, showing both high stability and strong agricultural application potential. These findings provide theoretical support and practical guidance for optimizing food waste gelatinization pyrolysis processes and promoting high-value, harmless, and resource-efficient utilization of food waste.