Effects of green tea and its polyphenols on the formation of heterocyclic aromatic amines, antioxidant capacity, and quality characteristics of roasted pork patties

• Low levels of GT and EGCG slightly inhibited the formation of MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx and PhIP. • While other levels of GT and EGCG as well as TP increased HAAs formation. • Patties with higher HAAs showed greater consumption of precursors and protein oxidation. • All additives enhanced antioxidant activities and lipid oxidation stability. Green tea (GT) and its polyphenols (TP) possess excellent antioxidant properties and have the potential to inhibit the formation of heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs) in thermally processed meat products. However, their effects on the formation HAAs in roasted pork remain unclear. The study investigated the effect of green tea (GT), TP, and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) at additive levels of 0.05 %, 0.25 %, and 0.5 % on the formation of HAAs, antioxidant capacity and quality characteristics during the roasting of pork patties at 250 °C. Low levels of GT (0.05 %, and 0.25 %) and EGCG (0.05 %) slightly inhibited the formation of HAAs (MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx, PhIP), with inhibition rates for MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx, and PhIP ranging from 4.70 %–8.32 % (except for 0.05 % GT), 6.15 %–16.19 %, and 5.69 %–24.69 %, respectively, while the other groups (0.5 % GT, 0.05 % TP, 0.25 % TP, 0.5 % TP, 0.25 % EGCG, and 0.5 % EGCG) promoted the formation of HAAs. Patties with higher levels of HAAs showed greater consumption of precursors (glucose, free amino acids, and creatine) and protein oxidation. Despite this, all three additives enhanced antioxidant activities (DPPH, ABTS, FRAP) and lipid oxidation stability dose-dependently. Additionally, the additives reduced the luminance ( L* ), redness ( a* ), and yellowness ( b* ) of roasted pork patties. TP and EGCG caused more weight loss in patties and negatively affected their texture, whereas GT had no significant effect on these parameters. Overall, EGCG (0.05 %, and 0.25 %) had the greatest impact on the formation of HAAs, antioxidant capacity, and quality characteristics of roasted pork patties, followed by TP (0.05 %, and 0.25 %) and GT (0.05 %, and 0.25 %). These findings suggest that the addition of low levels of GT (0.05 %, and 0.25 %) can inhibit HAAs formation, enhance antioxidant capacity, and maintain the quality characteristics of roasted pork patties, whereas the addition of TP and EGCG (0.05 %, 0.25 %, and 0.5 %) is not an effective method for improving quality characteristics and inhibiting HAAs formation in roasted pork patties.