Abstract: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of different cooking methods (steaming, roasting, steaming and then roasting, roasting and then steaming, and alternate steaming and roasting) on the eating quality of shrimps. The color difference, texture properties and total free amino acid content of cooked shrimps were determined by using a color difference meter, a texture analyzer and high performance liquid chromatography and sensory evaluation was carried out as well. The results showed that the L* values of the meat and shell shrimps cooked by roasting and then steaming was significantly lower than of those of shrimps cooked by the other methods (P < 0.05). The hardness and chewiness of roasted shrimps were significantly higher than those of shrimps cooked by the other methods (P < 0.05). Steamed shrimps had the highest total amount of free amino acids, and shrimps cooked by alternate steaming and roasting had the highest proportion of sweet amino acids and the lowest proportion of bitter amino acids. According to the results of sensory evaluation, steaming and alternate steaming and roasting were superior to the three other cooking methods.

Key words: Penaeus vannamei; cooking methods; eating quality; color difference; texture; sensory evaluation