Abstract: Spice liquid was produced from jellyfish protein peptic hydrolysate and glucose through the Maillard reaction. The Maillard reaction products (MRPs) had an appropriate salinity, a distinct delicious taste, a slight sweetness and a harmonious fish-like aroma. To identify and analyze their flavor, the contents of amino acids in the MRPs were analyzed using an automated amino acid analyzer and the contents of volatile compounds in their ether-soluble fraction were determined by GC-MS. The results showed that 17 kinds of free amino acids with a total content of 2.7197 g/dL were detected. The total amount of the ten essential amino acids (including His and Arg) was 48.86% of total amino acids, and the content of tasty amino acids (Asp and Glu) was 17.76%. Glu, Lys, Gly, His and Arg had a significant contribution to the taste of the MRPs. Totally 41 kinds of aroma components were separated and identified, which were composed of 8.71% alkanes, 58.35% alcohols, 13.65% esters, 17.86% acids, 0.42% aldehydes plus ketones, and 3.38% nitrogen-containing compounds plus sulfur-containing compounds. The compounds contributing greatly to the aroma of the spice liquid might be propylene glycol, ethyl acetate, dibutyl phthalate, 4-methyl-5-thiazoleethanol, 3,5-bis(1,1-dimethylethyl)phenol and a small amount of aldehydes and ketones.

Key words: enzymatic hydrolyzate of jellyfish, Maillard reaction, spice liquid, flavor components, analysis