A Study on the Sensory Properties, Volatiles and Fatty Acid-Derived Compounds of Traditionally Cooked Rice Varieties Popular in Türkiye

Abstract

A rice dish is a complex food item with different dimensions affected by variety, cooking technique, and the presence of other ingredients and their interactions. Baldo, Osmancik, and Cammeo are the most popular rice varieties, and Salma and Pilaf techniques are two of the most common cooking methods used in the culinary applications in Türkiye. Therefore, rice dishes were prepared with these rice varieties, and cooked via Salma and Pilaf techniques in this study. Butter, olive oil, margarine, and sunflower oil were included in the formulations as different fat types. The samples prepared with Osmancik rice, Salma method, and olive oil (O-S-O); Baldo rice, Pilaf method, and olive oil (B-P-O); and Cammeo rice, Salma method, and olive oil (C-S-O) were the top three dishes in terms of overall acceptability scores. Squalene, limonene, isopropyl myristate, cyclotetradecane, acetic acid, acetol, and nonanal were detected as volatile compounds in these rice dishes. Methyl oleate, methyl palmitate, methyl linoleate, methyl stearate, methyl palmitoleate, methyl linolenate, and methyl eicosanate are the common fatty acid components in these most liked rice dishes and olive oil used. Methyl benzoate and benzaldehyde were quantified using the Salma technique in O-S-O and C-S-O but not in B-P-O cooked with Pilaf method. Complicated chemical reactions among rice components are closely associated with the development of cooked rice aromas. This study is the first to investigate volatiles and fatty acid-derived compounds in rice dishes cooked with Baldo, Osmancik, and Cammeo varieties using Salma and Pilaf procedures together with sensory evaluation.