Abstract:The changes of volatile flavor substances, free amino acids and texture of the samples in the traditional sauce process of pork were studied. The electronic nose principal component analysis (PCA) found that the flavor of the sample changed significantly during the sauce process. The gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to further analyze the volatile components of the sample, and the flavor substances related to the spices in the sample were found. Most of them (o. umbellifera, terpenes, etc.) were detected and accumulated in the late stage of soy sauce (60~120 min), and the flavor substances (hexanal, etc.) associated with fat oxidation, amino acid degradation, and Maillard reaction are mostly detected in the early stage of the sauce (0 to 60 min) and rapidly accumulated in a short period of time. The content of total free amino acids in the samples changed significantly. The total free amino acid content in the raw meat was 289.45 mg/100 g, which generally increased during the sauce preparation process. The maximum value reached 415.60 mg/100 g after processing for 120 minutes. During the process of sauce preparation, the hardness and chewiness of the samples increased first and then decreased. Combined with the sensory evaluation, the texture of the sample (hardness of 3 000~3 500 g and chewability of 1 300~1 600 g) was found good when the sauce was processed for 40~60 minutes. The better flavor could be obtained with longer processes, though it was not conducive to the formation of the texture of the sample. The overall sensory evaluation indicated that the sample quality was best when the sauce was processed for 100 minutes.