Dry cured Iberian ham non-volatile components as affected by the length ofthe curing process

Free amino acids and peptides from 10 dry-cured Iberian hams ripened for tw o different processing times, a prolonged traditional one (600 days) and a shortened process (420 days), were analysed by reverse-phase HPLC. Most ami no acids decreased from day 420 to day 600, whereas total peptide content a nd some of the individual peptides increased during this period. When analy sing peptide extracts by HPLC coupled to an APCI-MS detector, peptides foun d showed a MW between 189 and 317. Partial least-squares regression of chem ical and sensory data indicated that saltiness was related to salt content, whereas bitterness was related to some late-eluting peptides. (C) 2000 Can adian Institute of Food Science and Technology. Published by Elsevier Scien ce Ltd. All rights reserved.