Flavor of Reheated Roast Duck

A triangular taste panel test on precooked and freshly roasted duck indicated that precooking, refrigerated storage, and reheating had an undesirable effect on the flavor of roast duck. Results of the thiobarbituric acid test suggested that injection of ducks with alpha-tocopherol or combinations of citric acid, polyphosphates, propyl gallate, and butylated hydroxyanisole prior to cooking offered some protection against oxidation during cooking, storage, and reheating. Samples treated with citric acid alone were not significantly different from untreated precooked samples. Protective effects of antioxidant injection that were indicated by thiobarbituric acid tests were not confirmed by hedonic taste panel evaluations of flavor, off flavor and overall quality. The panel was only able to detect deterioration of reheated samples compared to the freshly cooked control.