Analysis of volatile profiles and taste characteristics in sous-vide cooked chicken breast based on HS-SPME-GC-MS and E-tongue

Sous-vide (SV) cooking is a practical strategy to improve the texture of chicken breast products. Nevertheless, there has been minimal research on the impact of SV cooking conditions on the volatile profiles and taste characteristics of chicken breast. This study aimed to analyze the texture, volatile profiles and taste characteristics in SV cooked samples as affected by temperature-time combinations, by employing HS-SPME-GC-MS and E-tongue coupled with PCoA, PCA and PERMANOVA analysis. SV samples had lower cooking loss and shear force than traditional boiling (TB) samples. A total of 95 volatiles were identified in all raw and heated samples, and SV70 samples (SV cooking at 70 °C for 45 and 90 min) had the highest concentration of 1-octen-3-ol, 2-pentanone and total esters. TB and SV samples cooked exceeding 75 °C had more aldehydes than other samples. E-tongue results indicated increasing umami values of SV samples as temperature and time grew, and SV70 samples displayed the lowest bitterness and astringency values. PERMANOVA analysis showed that temperature rather than time caused the difference of taste characteristics among samples. Therefore, SV cooking at 70 °C can effectively improve the volatile profiles and taste attributes of chicken breasts. • Chicken breast cooked at 65 °C for 45 min had a volatile profile closer to raw meat. • Chicken breast cooked at 70 °C contained more ester compounds than other samples. • Chicken breast cooked at 70 °C had lower bitterness and astringency than others. • As temperature rose, umami increased and sourness decreased in sous-vide samples. • PERMANOVA test revealed temperature influenced taste profiles more than time.