Analysis of Volatile Metabolite Differences in Different Chives (<italic>Allium schoenoprasum</italic> L.) Cultivars from Luxi Using HS-SPME-GC-MS

This study employed headspace solid-phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) to analyze the volatile flavor profiles of four chive cultivars ('White Chive''Black Chive''Local Red Chive' and 'Tiegan Red Chive') from the Luxi region of Yunnan. A total of 797 volatile compounds across 15 classes were identified. Esters (140), terpenoids (123), and alcohols (97) were the most abundant in variety, while sulfur-containing compounds (128.51 mg/kg), ketones (107.27 mg/kg), and terpenoids (106.39 mg/kg) were the highest in content, and 166 differential aroma compounds were selected using the cutoff of variable importance in projection (VIP)&gt;1 with a P value&lt;0.05. Dipropyl disulfide was identified as key odorants contributing to grassy, onion, and sulfur notes. Orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) of compounds with OAV&gt;10 revealed 22 significant aroma compounds (VIP&gt;1, P&lt;0.05), among them, citronellal and (S)-3,7-dimethyl-6-octenal exhibited the highest VIP values (2.62) and were identified as critical aroma differential compounds. Further analysis characterized the primary aroma attributes as grassy, sulfurous, coffee, and minty. 'White Chive' and 'Black Chive' exhibited prominent grassy notes, whereas 'Local Red Chive' and 'Tiegan Red Chive' displayed stronger sulfurous, coffee, minty, vegetal, nutty, and leafy aromas, with 'Tiegan Red Chive' having the most distinct nutty character. This study has not only provided a scientific basis for flavor quality evaluation, but also has laid a foundation for the diversified flavor selection and deep processing of Luxi chives.