Effect of different sterilization methods on sensory quality and volatile flavor of flavor crab meat sauce

Flavor crab meat sauce (FCMS) is a new type of aquatic condiment that is not only rich in nutrition but also unique in terms of flavor. However, very little is known about how sterilization methods affect the sensory quality and volatile flavor of FCMS. In the present study, canned FCMS was subjected to the following sterilization methods: pasteurization (PS), microwave sterilization (MS), ultrasonic sterilization (US), and high temperature sterilization (HTS). Each sterilization method was evaluated on the basis of texture, color, sensory score, volatile flavor, and total viable counts in FCMS observed after sterilization. Results demonstrated that the total viable count decreased to 28, 26, 58, and 18 CFU/g respectively after PS, MS, US, and HTS treatments; no coliform group was detected in any of these samples. PS and MS had no significant effect on the texture of FCMS (P > 0.05), but US and HTS reduced hardness and viscosity of FCMS. MS and HTS significantly reduced the L*, a*, and b* values of FCMS (P < 0.05). The original brightness and red value of FCMS remained the same after PS and US. MS and HTS reduced the sensory score of FCMS to a great extent, while PS and US maintained the original sensory score of FCMS. Assessment of volatile flavor profile of FCMS post different sterilization treatments revealed that MS and HTS reduced the total ester content, while US reduced the total amount of alcohols in FCMS. However, PS not only maintained the original total amount of esters in FCMS, but also increased the content of alcohols, aldehydes, and ketones. Therefore, PS could be selected as a feasible sterilization method for FCMS among the four different sterilization methods.