Enhancing the flavor profiles of sheep bone soup by supplementing four shellfish species: A cross-species flavor synergy

Sheep bone soup (SBS) is popular but faces challenges in flavor richness and mutton odor. Four shellfish species, including Ruditapes philippinarum, Mactra chinensis, Sinonovacula constricta, and Meretrix meretrix, were used to enhance the flavor profiles of SBS in the present study. All the shellfish-added groups showed a great increase in saltiness, richness, and umami as revealed by E-tongue. Umami/sweet free amino acids, 5'-nucleotides, and fumaric acid were elevated after shellfish addition. E-nose could efficiently distinguish the five SBS groups. 68 volatile flavor compounds were identified in each group via GC-IMS. Aldehydes, alcohols, ketones, and esters were the primary ones, and their relative concentrations were the highest in SBS-S, SBS-MC, SBS-R, and SBS-F, respectively. OPLS-DA quantified inter-group differences. Heat map clustering analysis categorized the five SBS samples into three groups. The addition of S.constricta and M.chinensis showed relatively greater impact on the overall flavor profiles of SBS. These findings demonstrated shellfish's potential to enhance SBS flavor profiles and provide new insights into the development of bone-sourced seafood-flavored dishes.