Comparison of volatile components in fresh and dried red peppers (Capsicum annuum L.)

Fresh, and sun- and oven-dried red peppers were analyzed for volatile components. Also, their odor-active compounds were determined using gas chromatography-olfactometry (GC-O). More diverse volatile components, such as aldehydes, ketones, acids, and esters, were found in dried samples than in fresh ones. They included hexanal, ethyl acetate, alpha-ionone, and P-ionone. Some Strecker aldehydes, 2-methyl butanal and 3-methyl buranal, were found only in dried red peppers. More hydrocarbons of high volatility and terpene-type components, such as gamma-terpinene and aromadendrene, were detected only in fresh red peppers. A considerable amount of naphthalene was formed during sun-drying, whereas 2-furancarboxaldehyde, 1-methyl-1H-pyrrole and benzeneethanol were detected only in oven-dried red peppers. Characteristic odor of fresh ones could be attributed to 3-penten-2-ol, 2-methyl-2-butenal, 2-methoxy phenol, 2-hydroxy-methyl-benzoate, and 2-phenoxy ethanol, whereas some odorants, including 2-pentyl furan, naphthalene, hexyl hexanoate, and alpha-ionone, could be responsible for distinctive odor property of sun-dried red peppers. 2-Furancarboxaldehyde, benzeneethanol, 4-vinyl-2-methoxy phenol, and unknown played important roles in odor property of oven-dried red peppers.