Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the difference in the characteristic flavor intensity of different lamb meats from different carcass cuts. The composition and content of free fatty acids in 15 lamb samples were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to establish an evaluation model for the characteristic flavor intensity of lamb meat. The results showed that the contribution rates of the first three principal components were 56.654%, 17.476% and 14.287%, respectively and the cumulative contribution rate was 88.417%, which could not only accurately reflect the information on the original data, but also represent the basic information on free fatty acids. The correlation coefficient between the model results and traditional sensory evaluation was 0.939, indicating good consistency. Therefore, the evaluation model established by PCA was feasible and provided a new method for the evaluation of the characteristic flavor intensity of lamb meat.

Key words: lamb, free fatty acid, characteristic flavor, principle component analysis, evaluation model