Abstract: Chaoshan fish sauce was analyzed for nutritional composition and compared with imported fish sauce products. All tested samples had high salt content, especially Chaoshan fish sauce (as high as 30%). However, Chaoshan fish sauce showed the lowest ratio of total volatile basic nitrogen to trimethylamine nitrogen and better fermentation quality. EAA/TAA ratio in Chaoshan fish sauce was 51.23%, which was higher than the FAO/WHO pattern, and EAA/NEAA was 105.04%. Chaoshan fish sauce contained 110.53 mg/100 mL taurine. Therefore, it is a salty and tasty seasoning with high nutritional value. Moreover, abundant micro-elements such as Ca were found in Chaoshan fish sauce. Chaoshan fish sauce as a natural fermentation product of marine trash fish exhibited a 90.51% antioxidant activity in modified FRAP assay and a TCA-soluble short peptide content of 28.49 mg/mL.

Key words: fish sauce, nutritional composition, quality evaluation, ratio of total volatile basic nitrogen to trimethylamine nitrogen, antioxidant activity