Comparison of nonvolatile taste components in 18 strong fragrance spices

Abstract

In order to investigate the taste compounds of 18 strong fragrance spices, high performance liquid chromatography was used to determine the content of free amino acids, nucleotides and organic acids. Cluster analysis was used to classify on the basis of similar data. The results showed that the content of free amino acid in tarragon was the highest, 44.97 g/kg, followed thyme, 11.88 g/kg. The contents of organic acids in 3 spice samples were significantly higher compared with others, including thyme (54.67 g/kg), sweet basil (42.28 g/kg) and small cardamon (40.72 g/kg). Nucleotides’ contents were significantly higher in star anise (3.54 g/kg) than the other 17 spice samples. The taste active value (TAV) of glutamic acid (22.01) was the highest. In addition, the TAVs of lactic acid, acetic acid, ascorbic acid, tartaric acid and malic acid in 18 spice samples were also more than 1, which indicated that these compounds contribute greatly to spices taste. The equivalent umami concentration (EUC) of tarragon was the highest, with 26.15 g monosodium glutamate (MSG)/100 g. The 18 strong fragrance spices were divided into 2 categories according to the cluster analysis of EUC. The tarragon and dill were one category, other 16 spices were the other category. When the Euclidean distance increased to 25, the tarragon and dill were incorporated into the category of other 16 spices.

Keywords

• strong fragrance spice
• free amino acid
• nucleotides
• organic acid
• taste active value
• equivalent umami concentration
• cluster analysis