SENSORY AND CHROMATOGRAPHIC EVALUATIONS OF WATER-SOLUBLE FRACTIONS FROM DRIED SAUSAGES

Low molecular weight water soluble compounds were extracted from Dar;i sh salami, Italian sausage, and Spanish chorizo. The extracts were fra ctionated by gel filtration chromatography revealing peptides with M-r < 4200 Da. Fractions consisting of smaller peptides and free amino ac ids had enhanced savory taste impressions described as mainly bouillon , bitter, sour, salty, and plastic with odor notes of boiled potato. D etermination of amino acids in the fractions before and after hydrolys is revealed the presence of mainly hydrophilic peptides in all fractio ns. Partial least-squares regression of the amino acid data and the se nsory results indicated that bouillon taste was related to a mixture o f different amino acids and peptides, that potato odor in particular c orrelated with high content of tyrosine, free and as the peptide resid ue, that bitterness was related to the level of certain hydrophobic am ino acids, and that sourness was related to glutamic acid.