Deciphering the effect of sugar-to-water mass ratios on key aroma formation in roasted ducks: Insights from volatilomics, lipidomics, and Maillard reaction.

Sugar-coating is a pivotal step in roasted duck processing, yet its optimization has relied on artisanal experience rather than standardized protocols. This study explored how varying sugar-to-water mass ratios affect the aroma formation. The 1:6 sugar-to-water mass ratio produced the richest aroma compounds in roasted ducks compared with the ratios of 1:5, 1:7 and 1:8. This optimal condition likely facilitated the glucose penetration from the skin into the meat, enhancing Maillard reactions with arginine and alanine for pyrazine formation. It also promoted the contribution of triglycerides, ceramides, and phosphatidylcholines containing C18-acyl chains to the formation and retention of key odorants. Variations in the consumption of arginine, alanine, phospholipids, and triglycerides mainly caused aroma differences in roasted ducks with different sugar-coating ratios. Interestingly, (E)-2-nonenal and (E, E)-2,4-nonadienal emerged as potential markers discriminating roasted ducks with various sugar-coating ratios. These findings provided new insights into the standardized processing of sugar-coated roasted duck.