Effect of gallic acid on the aroma constituents of soymilk and soy protein isolates

Volatile compounds from soymilk were analyzed by gas chromatography/olfactometry/mass spectrometry (GCO/MS) with direct injection of various volumes of static headspaces. The most powerful odorants, determined by the minimum headspace volume required to detect by olfactometry, were (i) hexanal, (ii) acetaldehyde, (iii) methanethiol, (iv) dimethyl trisulfide (DMTS), and (v) 2-pentyl furan. Analyses of soymilk prepared with the addition of 100 ppm gallic acid revealed that the only two detectable odorants were hexanal and acetaldehyde. Sensory analyses of the soymilk treated with 100 ppm gallic acid produced a significantly lower score (P=0.0006) for overall odor intensity compared with the control soymilk. Aqueous slurries of soy protein isolates (SPI) prepared with the addition of 100 ppm gallic acid also had lower odor intensities than the control SPI (P<0.0001). GCO/MS analyses of headspace volatiles revealed that the gallic acid treatment had removed all detectable levels of methanethiol and DMTS while having no significant effect on the level of hexanal (P=0.81).