Resumen de Effects of Different Salt Treatments on the Fermentation Metabolites and Bacterial Profiles of Kimchi

Dong Wook Kim, Bo‐Min Kim, Hyeon‐Jeong Lee, Gwang‐Ju Jang, Seong Hwa Song, Jae‐In Lee, Sang Bong Lee, Jae Min Shim, Kang Wook Lee, Jeong Hwan Kim, Kyung‐Sik Ham, Feng Chen, Hyun‐Jin Kim

• The effects of purified salt (PS) and mineral‐rich sea salt (MRS), both with different mineral profiles, on kimchi fermentation were studied using a culture‐dependent 16S rRNA sequencing technique and mass‐based metabolomic analysis. The different mineral profiles in the fermentation medium caused changes in the bacterial profiles of the 2 kimchi products. An increase of Leuconostocspecies in MRS‐kimchi decreased the Lactobacillus/Leuconostocratio, which led to changes in metabolites (including sugars, amino acids, organic acids, lipids, sulfur compounds, and terpenoids) associated with kimchi quality. Although further studies on the relationship between these salt types and kimchi fermentation are needed, these results suggested that the MRS treatment had positively affected the changes of the kimchi mineral contents, bacterial growth, and metabolite profiles, which are linked to kimchi quality. This study indicates that the change of the mineral profile caused by the different salt treatments was one of the main causes for the differences of the bacterial profiles of the 2 kimchi products. The changes of the bacterial profiles led to a change of the kimchi metabolite profiles associated with sensory and nutritional qualities.