To inhibit spoilage and deterioration during the storage of cold spicy rabbit, this study used mature and tender ginger extract obtained by subcritical extraction to make cold spicy rabbit. The volatile flavor substances of the extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and their optimal concentrations were determined through sensory evaluation. We further explored their effects on the microbiological (total colony count (TCC), Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, and total coliform) and physicochemical (pH, peroxide value (POV), and acid value (AV)) properties of cold spicy rabbit after storage periods of 0, 1, 5, 15, and 20 days. The results showed that a total of 83 volatile components were detected in the two ginger extracts, with 30 volatile components being common to both. The relative contents of α-farnene and β-bisabolene were higher and the content of geranyl acetate was significantly lower in the mature ginger extract than in the tender ginger extract. Sensory evaluation showed that for both extracts, the optimal concentration that resulted in the highest sensory scores was 0.05%. The two ginger extracts effectively inhibited the growth of microorganisms in cold spicy rabbit during storage, with the tender ginger extract being more effective than the mature ginger extract. Both of them had the most potent inhibitory effect on Salmonella. On day 20, the colony counts in the blank and control groups reached (9.48 ± 0.61) and (7.88 ± 0.56) (lg(CFU/mL)), respectively, significantly higher than those in the tender and mature ginger extract groups (P < 0.05), (6.89 ± 0.36) and (7.30 ± 0.33) (lg(CFU/mL)), respectively. The pH, POV and AV of the ginger extract groups were significantly lower than those of the blank group, indicating that the ginger extracts could effectively slow down fat oxidation in cold spicy rabbit during storage. This study provides a theoretical basis for the application of ginger extracts as a natural preservative in cold spicy rabbit, with important implications for the industry.

In this study, oleoresin was extracted from Zanthoxylum bungeanum produced in Hanyuan, Sichuan by supercritical CO₂ extraction. The effect of three process parameters (temperature, pressure and extraction time) on the yield, total phenol, total flavonoid and tingling compound (sanshools) contents of oleoresin was examined. The compositions of volatile flavor compounds and tingling compounds were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Flavor contributions were quantitatively evaluated based on odor activity values (OAVs) and aroma character impact (ACI) values and validated by aroma sensory evaluation. The results showed that the highest yield of oleoresin of (15.98 ± 1.05)% was obtained after 120 min of extraction under medium/high-temperature and high-pressure conditions (40 ℃/50 ℃, 30 MPa), and the retention rate of tingling compounds in the oleoresin was as high as (94.82 ± 1.12)%. Low-temperature and low-pressure conditions (30 ℃, 10 MPa) resulted in the maximum retention rates of total phenolics and flavonoids ((79.70 ± 1.35)% and (83.41 ± 1.14)%, respectively). In addition, a total of 43 volatile compounds were identified in the oleoresin, among which linalool and linalyl acetate were the key aroma components, being significantly regulated by temperature gradient. Among the five identified sanshools, the proportion of hydroxy-α-sanshool was 60.66%–75.30%, which was the key tingling component of Z. bungeanum. This study provides a theoretical basis for the targeted preparation and quality control of Z. bungeanum oleoresin through process-composition-flavor multi-dimensional analysis, which has important guiding significance for the development of the Z. bungeanum deep processing industry.