Changes of Volatile Compounds in Vanilla Beans during Curing Process

In order to analyze the accumulation of volatile components in vanilla beans during the curing process,volatile compounds in vanilla beans were extracted using organic solvents and quantitated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS)with DB-5 and DB-Wax capillary column. The results indicated that 45 volatiles were detected with DB-5 for separation,and 19,17,25,33,37 components were identified in fresh vanilla bean(FVB),blanched vanilla beans(BVB),sweated vanilla beans(SVB),dried vanilla beans(DVB)and cured vanilla bean(CVB),respectively. Using DB-Wax for separation 20,21,27,38,46 volatile components were detected of vanilla beans at different curing stages. A total of 69 volatile compounds were detected in vanilla beans. Among them,acetic acid,guaiacol,vanillyl alcohol,n-hexadecanoic acids were with high content and increased during curing.(E)-2-decenal,octadecanoic acid methyl ester,behenic alcohol only appeared in earlier stages. Hexanedioic acid bis(2-ethylhexyl)ester and octyl acetate decreased during curing. The aroma of cured vanilla beans was formed by the mixing of metabolites of various precursors.