A Detailed Comparative Study on Some Physicochemical Properties, Volatile Composition, Fatty Acid, and Mineral Profile of Different Almond (Prunus dulcis L.) Varieties

Abstract

In the present investigation, the main purpose of the research was to reveal the differences among the almond genotypes in terms of their physicochemical properties, volatile composition, fatty acid, and mineral profile. For that reason, ten different almond genotypes originated from dif¬ferent countries were subjected to relevant analysis. The results showed that the total oil, protein, and ash levels of the almond samples ranged between 30.84-41.43%, 17.43-22.72%, and 2.90-3.40%, respectively. Additionally, total phenolic content of the samples was in the range of 38.7-101.03 mg GAE/100 g sample. It was revealed that the almond samples were rich in monounsaturated fatty acids, and oleic acid was the major one with levels of 61.22-77.63%. For all samples, potassium, magnesium, and phosphorus were the major minerals, and the highest concentration was for potas¬sium with levels of 6192.08-11,046.05 mg/kg. Volatile profile analysis showed that the toluene, 4- octanone, pinacol, and 2-methylpentanal were the dominant volatile compounds for all almond genotypes. The results revealed that the different almond varieties showed significant differences depending on the origin.