Sensory Drivers of Sliced Raw Fish in Korea: Case Study on Flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) and Rockfish (Sebastes schlegeli)

摘要

This study was conducted to investigate sensory characteristics and consumer acceptance of sliced raw fish. The two most popular varieties in Korea, flounder and rockfish, were used. Samples of each variety were prepared as follows to create consistent perceptible sensory differences: 'fresh' (consumed within 2 h after sacrifice), 'aged' (stored at 1°C for 24 h), 'frozen' (frozen at -16°C for 23 h then thawed at 23.5°C for 1 h), and 'immersed' (immersed in sterilized water at 1°C for 24 h). Sensory profiles of samples were determined through quantitative descriptive analysis using 10 trained panelists. Consumer acceptance test was conducted using 47 consumers. Analyses of variance were conducted to test significance of differences in sensory profiles and hedonic ratings among samples. Consumers were clustered according to their overall liking scores, and their preference patterns were cross-checked with sensory profiles. For both fish varieties, 'fresh' was characterized by stronger hardness, cohesiveness, springiness, cartilage-like texture (applied to only rockfish), and fishy flavor, whereas 'frozen' and 'immersed' were distinguished from other samples for their stronger wetness, juiciness, and fresh fish flavor than those of other samples.'Aged' was significantly less hard, cohesive, and springy than 'fresh' as well as less juicy and wet than 'frozen' and 'immersed'. Consumers significantly prefened 'fresh' flounder and rockfish to others for their strong cohesiveness and springiness, indicating textural attributes were main factors affecting consumer preferences. However, for both flounder and rockfish, 40 — 50% of respondents preferred 'frozen' and 'immersed' to 'fresh' for their tenderness and fresh fish flavor. For this group of consumers, flavor liking had a greater effect on overall preference than texture preference. The result suggests that cohesive and springy textures and fresh fish flavor are major drivers of preferences for raw fish slices, but their relative importance and optimal levels varied across individual consumers.