Chapter 12 – Potato Flavor

Potatoes are a major food source throughout the world, and consumers are becoming increasingly aware of flavor as an important quality attribute. Perceived flavor is a combination of taste and aroma. The volatile compounds responsible for aroma are numerous in cooked potato and vary in type and quantity depending on the potato cultivar, tuber production and storage systems, and cooking method. Several methods of chemical analysis have been used to identify those metabolites key to good potato flavor, and progress has been made by combining the power of sensory panels and metabolomic and molecular analyses. Yet the metabolite signature responsible for imparting the unique flavor of cooked potato is still being determined. In this chapter we review these topics, particularly in the context of sensory perception of potato flavor.