Pepper aroma

Pepper, White. This spice is derived from the same plant as black pepper except that the berries are allowed to ripen fully. The dark outer hulls are removed by mbbing and washing after soaking and fermentation. White pepper has generally the same flavor and aroma as black pepper however, it is milder and has a slight fecal odor. 

Another commercially available compound which is important to the galbanum aroma is 2-methoxy-3-isobutylpyrazine [24683-00-9] (48), which possesses an intense green pepper odor. 

Although most consumers appreciate the fieriness of chile, capsaicinoids are not perceived through odor or taste receptors but through the nociceptive pain receptors described earlier. The compounds in chile fruit that create the flavor and aroma are produced in the fruit wall. Buttery et al. [90] generated vacuum steam distilled oil from green bell pepper macerate, with well over 40 peaks on subsequent GC/MS analysis. Of these peaks, the major flavor compound associated with bell pepper aroma was 2-methoxy-3-isobutylpyrazine (Fig. 8.1). They also reported several monoterpenoids in abundance, limonene, trans- 3-ocimene, and linalool as well as other aliphatic aldehydes and ketones. The flavor composition of dried red bell pepper powder (sweet paprika) extracted with ether identified 44 key peaks by GC/MS [91]. In these dried samples the key compounds were P-ionone and several furanones. The post-harvest processing and the different fruit maturities as well as possible varietal differences are all causes for the different aromatic profiles. 

The resinoids described above should be distinguished from prepared oleoresins (e.g., pepper, ginger, and vanilla oleoresins), which are concentrates prepared from spices by solvent extraction. The solvent that is used depends on the spice currently, these products are often obtained by extraction with supercritical carbon dioxide [223a]. Pepper and ginger oleoresins contain not only volatile aroma compounds, but also substances responsible for pungency. 

Odorants that cause aroma changes, e.g. olf-flavours, may be detected by a comparative AEDA of fresh and deteriorated samples. Studies on storage defects of soybean oil [22, 51], buttermilk [52], boiled cod [53], dry parsley [54] and black and white pepper [55] are examples. 

In the case of boiled beef the results of AEDA were compared with those of AECA. Table 16.4 indicates that they agreed except in three cases. The odour potencies of 4-hydroxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone, 3-mercapto-2-pentanone and methional were more than one dilution step higher in AECA than in AEDA [56]. Most likely, portions of these odorants had been lost during concentration of the extract for AEDA. AECA was also used in studies on the aroma of pepper [55], coffee [57] and Camembert cheese [58]. 

Commercially available black pepper comes from the entire unripe fruit of a Piper nigrum L. plant and is valued for its pungent taste and aroma. Besides its hot flavor, there are many folk medicine remedies using black pepper. It has antiallergic activity. Piperine strongly inhibits hepatic arylhydrocarbonhydroxylase and UDP-glucuronyl transferase activities. Some proven uses for black pepper extracts are as an insecticide and as a tumor inhibitor. To research claims such as these, it is necessary to isolate the components of pepper. 

Pungency is the quality which has made pepper world famous as the King of Spices it is given an even greater weightage than aroma when determining the overall quality of pepper. 

Pyrazines. In the thirties, the attention on pyrazines was focused on its industrial role in dyes, photographic emulsions and chemotherapy. Its importance in life processes was indicated in its derivative, vitamin B2 (riboflavin, 6,7-dimethyl-9-(l -D-ribityl isoalloxazine). Later,in the midsixties, it was identified in foods and its contributions to the unique flavor and aroma of raw and processed foods attracted the attention of flavor chemists Pyrazine derivatives contribute to the roasting, toasting, nutty, chocolaty, coffee, earthy, caramel, maple-like, bread-like, and bell pepper notes in foods. The reader is referred to the reviews on Krems and Spoerri (88) on the chemistry of pyrazines, and the review of pyrazines in foods by Maga and Sizer (89, 90) Table XVI summaries sensory description and threshold of selected pyrazines. 

The aroma of black pepper is contributed mainly by the volatile oil, which varies between 2 and 5% in the berries. 

The major monoterpene hydrocarbons present in pepper oil are a- and (3-pinenes, sabinene and limonene. Chemical structures of major aroma compounds are illustrated in Fig. 2.1. 

Freshpepperwas found to taste and smell differently when compared with dry pepper and pepper oil. The fresh pepper aroma compounds were isolated by Amberlite column chromatography and analysed by GC and... 

Piperine is the major constituent of pepper oleoresin. Black pepper oil contributes towards the aroma, oleoresin contributes towards the overall taste and the alkaloid... 

The aroma and pungent constituents of pepper offer great future in pharmacology and industrial application. 

Korany, K. and Amtmann, M. (1998) Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry measurements in the investigation of pepper aroma structures. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 11(6), 686-690. 

The leaf of the Indian cassia, known as tejpat in Hindi, is a spice that has a clovelike odour and a faint pepper-like aroma. It is a popular flavouring agent in north Indian vegetarian and non-vegetarian preparations. Apart from C. tamala, C. sulphum-tum, C. bejolghota and C. impressinervium are also traded as tejpat in North-east India (Baruah et al., 2000). The essential oil is used in the flavouring and formulation of liquors and confections. 

Chilli or paprika is used for flavour, not heat, in some cuisines. Flavour is a complex sensation determined in the mouth. One of the most potent volatiles known to humans is found in chilli, the pyrazine 2-methoxy-3-isobutyl-pyrazine, the green bell pepper smell. Reports indicate that humans can detect this odour at two parts per trillion. Luning et al. (1994) reported the presence of more than 80 odour compounds in C. annuum. C.frutescenscv. Tabasco contained 125 compounds whose relative abundance changed with the season of harvest. The composition of aroma compounds of Tabasco differed significantly from that of the green... 

Yeoman et al. (35) demonstrated that supplying immediate precursors of capsaicin, the hot aroma compound of pepper, to Capsicum frutescens cultures increased the amount of capsaicin produced. Feeding more general precursors such as amino acids, also increased capsaicin production but to a lesser extent than when immediate precursors were applied. Feeding intermediate precursors to Allium cepa L. callus, enhanced levels of aroma components of onion flavor (36). 

An odor can be described by the combination of threshold value and odor quality. The threshold value, the lowest concentration that creates an odor impression, can be considered the intensity factor, whereas the odor quality describes the character of the aroma. As has been mentioned under olfactory theories, attempts at reducing the number of characteristic odor qualities to a small number have not been successful. In many cases, the aroma and flavor of a food can be related to the presence of one or a few compounds that create an impression of a particular food when smelled alone. Such compounds have been named contributory flavor compounds by Jennings and Sevenants (1964). Some such compounds are the pyrazines, which give the odor quality of green bell peppers nootkatone for grapefmit esters for fruits ... 

The pungent aroma of wasabi is a result of allyl isothiocyanate162 (138), the enzymatically cleaved component of its precursor sinigrin (139).163 Sansho (Zanthoxylum piperitum) is used in Japan, and its Chinese counterpart -Sichuan pepper (Zanthoxylum similans) — is consumed in some parts of China.164 Shiso Perilla fmtescens) is a herb... 

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