Detection and Discrimination of Warmed-Over Flavor in Pre-Cooked Turkey Meat Using Electronic Nose Systems

Abstract

Warmed-over flavor (WOF) was investigated for turkey cooked via two methods, oven and microwave, and stored at 4°C over a 48-hour testing period. A thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) chemical assay was run to quantify the presence of a secondary lipid oxidation product, malonaldehyde, which is indicative of warmed-over flavor. Both conducting polymer and quartz microbalance electronic noses were utilized to develop aroma patterns for the turkey samples. Although it is not possible to determine the chemical identity of the volatile chemicals detected by the electronic noses, both devices were able to distinguish between the aroma signatures of the different testing periods. Oven-cooked turkey proved to be more susceptible to WOF than microwave-cooked turkey. Correlations between sensor readings and TBARS data indicate promising potential for the food industry to evaluate the level of warmed-over flavor.