General Overview of the Maillard Reaction

Hodge [10] was the first to present an outline of the overall reactions involved in the Maillard reaction. Generally speaking, the Maillard reaction is a reaction between carbonyls and amines. The carbonyls in foods most often are reducing sugars, while the amines come from either amino acids or proteins. In the flavor industry, the 

1-amino-1-deoxyketoses or l-amino-2-deoxy-2-aldose — (Amadori or Heyns rearrangement) 

FIGURE 5.1 Fomation of flavor compounds via the Maillard reaction. (From Vernin, G., C. Parkanyi, Chem. Heterocycl. Comp. Flavours Aromas, p. 151, 1982. With permission.) 

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