Generation of Meaty Aroma from Onion ( L.) with : Fermentation System, Sensory Profile, and Aroma Characterization.

One of the main reasons for consumer rejection of plant-based meat alternatives is the lack of meaty flavor after cooking. In this study, a platform was developed to generate meaty flavors solely from substrates (chives, leeks, ramsons, and onions) using basidiomycete-mediated submerged fermentations. -mediated fermentation of onions resulted in an intense meaty and liver sausage-like flavor under proper fermentation parameters. Using multisolvent and solvent-free aroma extractions coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-olfactometry, 5 odorants with high assigned flavor dilution (FD) factors (≥ 256) were identified in the fermented sample that have been reported in the literature as important aroma compounds of meat products: methyl palmitate, bis(2-methyl-furyl) disulfide, ()-2,4-decadienal, γ-nonalactone, and eugenol. Using selected ion monitoring, the presence of bis(2-methyl-furyl) disulfide (meaty, savory, FD 256) after fermentation was confirmed. It was proposed that enzymatically forms bis(2-methyl-furyl) disulfide from intermediates derived from the thermal degradation of thiamine.