In this study, adenosine triphosphate (ATP)‐related compounds and free amino acids were determined to study the changes of water‐soluble flavor substances in grass carp meat during steaming for 18 min. Sensory assessment, electronic tongue, equivalent umami concentration (EUC) value, and taste active value (TAV) were also performed to obtain the best quality of steamed grass carp meat. The results showed that the flavor presented by nucleotides in three parts meat was better within 9 min. The bitter amino acids in the dorsal meat and red meat significantly decreased at 6 min (101.33 mg/100 g and 44.64 mg/100 g, respectively). From the sensory analysis, EUC value, and TAV, it can be found that the quality of grass carp meat was the best when steamed for 6–9 min. The electronic tongue indicated that the taste differences were significantly between 6 and 9 min. Therefore, this study suggested that grass carp should be eaten during 6–9 min of steaming. Practical applications As the main way of meat processing and eating, heating not only endows the product with good color, but also kill microorganisms and improve the product quality. The reasonable heating will make the protein denaturation of the food, so that the protein digestion and absorption rate can be improved, which is conducive to people to obtain more abundant nutrition. The quality changes of grass carp meat during 18 min of steaming were studied by measuring ATP‐related compounds and free amino acids, combining with sensory assessment, electronic tongue analysis, EUC value, and TAV. These results not only provide useful information for the quality control of grass carp in the heating process, but also provide theoretical reference for the improvement of the nutritional value of grass carp. In addition, the mechanism of flavor change in the heating process of grass carp will be further improved, and effective suggestions will be provided for consumers to reasonably eat grass carp.

The research on the quality changes of grass carp during brine salting with 6%, 8%, and 10% salt additions was evaluated by chemical and physical indicators, as well as a sensory assessment and microbiological analysis. The NaCl content was proportional to salt addition and salting time. The increase of salt addition could lead to the increase of hardness and chewiness in which change trends were contrary to the pH within 24 hr. All K values were less than 10% during brine salting. The effect of 8% salt additions on free amino acids was relatively smaller. Higher levels of salt additions could inhibit bacterial growth. Combined with sensory assessment, equivalent umami concentration (EUC), and taste activity value (TAV) to analysis comprehensively, it was suggested that grass carp meat should be eaten at 4–8 hr of brine salting with 8% salt additions or processed for the next step, in which the grass carp meat had a better taste and quality.

This study was aimed at to investigate the quality changes of grass carp during short‐term starvation. The pH, lactic acid, free amino acid, and adenosine triphosphate‐related compounds of dorsal meat, belly meat and red meat in grass carp were measured during starvation for 6 days, and the quality of grass carp was evaluated by K value, equivalent umami concentration (EUC), taste activity value (TAV), and electronic tongue. The pH of three parts meat reached the maximum value on the fourth day, which was closely related to the lactic acid content. Concurrently, the contents of fresh sweet amino acids were higher on the fourth day in all parts. The K values in dorsal meat and belly meat were below 10% during starvation. Considering the overall results of electronic tongue, EUC, and TAV analysis, it is suggested that grass carp should be marketed and eaten with a starvation period of 2–4 days for best taste and quality.