ABSTRACT
References ......................................................................................................................................308
The avor of food is the most important sensory attribute affecting the acceptance and preference of consumers. Standards organizations in many countries de ne avor as a total impression of taste, odor, tactile, kinesthetic, temperature, and pain sensations perceived through tasting [1]. It is widely accepted that avor includes the aromatics, such as olfactory perceptions caused by volatile substances; the tastes, such as gustatory perceptions (salty, sweet, sour, and bitter) caused by soluble
substances [2]; and the chemical feeling factors that are perceived as astringency, spicy hot, cooling, and metallic avor, stimulating the nerve ends in the membranes [3]. The volatile compounds have low molecular weights and may be lost during processing. However, some important components that are naturally present in foodstuffs may participate in avor development during the processing as well.
