ABSTRACT
The term "seafood" as it applies to food and flavor is generally recognized as referring to those forms of life that reside wholly or in part in an aquatic environment and are regularly consumed as tablefare. Lipid-derived volatile aroma compounds play a predominant role in the flavor of seafoods. Volatiles derived through lipoxygenase-mediated pathways have recently been shown to contribute to the characteristic flavors of fresh seafoods. Sulfur-containing volatiles have been shown to contribute to aromas that characterize some fresh seafoods. The flavor characteristics of seafood are derived from both their volatile components and their nonvolatile taste constituents. Thermally processed fish flavors can be separated into at least five general classifications based on the distinctive flavors provided by volatile aroma compounds: saltwater "whitefish," freshwater "whitefish," tuna and mackerals, trout and char, and salmon. Tuna and mackerel constitute another general class of fish flavors that are readily recognized by the consumer.
