Key odor and physicochemical characteristics of raw and roasted jicaro seeds ( Crescentia alata K.H.B.)

Jicaro seeds (Crescentia alata) arewidely consumed in Central America, primarily as a popular tasty and nutritiousbeverage called “horchata”. Seeds are roasted to develop a specific aroma through a process that has never beenexplored. Volatile compounds, extracted from raw and roasted jicaro seeds (140 °C for 140 s) by SAFE (SolventAssisted Flavor Evaporation), were analyzed by Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS). Twentysevenvolatile compoundswere isolated, among which, ethyl-2-methylbutyrate was designated by olfactometryas providing the characteristic jicaro note (0.16 and 0.47 mg/kg dry basis (d.b.) in rawand roasted seeds, respectively).The release of volatile compounds fromtheMaillard reaction, such as pyrazines, and the increase of ethyl-2-methylbutyrate after roasting, exhausted the pleasant jicaro aroma.This mild roasting process had a slight impact on polyphenol, fructose and freeamino acid contents, in agreementwith the Maillard reaction. Confocal microscopy showed the coalescence of lipids in roasted jicaro seeds, whichmight explain the higher extracted fat content