Influence of malaxation temperature and time on the quality of virgin olive oils

To study the influence of operative conditions adopted during the malaxation of pastes on the quality of resulting oils, we compared sensory characteristics, secoiridoid compounds and the volatile composition of oils extracted from homogeneous batches of olive fruits from Coratina and Frantoio cultivars by using different malaxation times and temperatures. Malaxation time, and especially temperature, negatively affected the intensity of sensory attributes and the content of secoiridoid compounds, modified the composition of metabolites arising from lipoxygenase (LOX) pathways, reducing volatile compounds displaying pleasant sensations and increasing those giving less attractive perceptions, and also elevated the production of 2-methyl butanal and 3-methyl butanal through amino acid conversion. Low temperatures and times, ranging between 30 and 45 min, according to the rheology of the olive pastes, were the optimal operative conditions for the malaxation.