Dynamic monitoring and correlation analysis of flavour quality and bacterial community during sufu fermentation

Dynamic changes in the flavour quality and microbial composition of sufu in the whole fermentation were studied, and the correlation between them was analyzed. Totally, 135 volatile flavours were identified. The types of volatile substances in sufu ripening for 90 days reached 44, which mainly contributed to volatile components of odour including 1‐octen‐3‐ol (ROAV = 89.89), phenylethyl alcohol (ROAV = 25.05), benzaldehyde (ROAV = 46.82), octanoic acid ethyl ester (ROAV = 49.01) and 2‐pentyl furan (ROAV = 100). Glutamate acid, aspartic acid and 5′‐guanylate contributed significantly to sufu post‐fermentation (TAV >1). The microorganisms in sufu were identified using internal transcribed spacer sequencing technology. The correlations among volatile flavour, taste substances and bacterial community structure were tested via Spearman analysis. Monascus kaoliang promoted the accumulation of most taste components and ethyl ester flavour substances, while Actinomucor elegans inhibited the accumulation of most flavour substances in sufu. This study could potentially help with the rational design of microbial communities to improve sufu quality.