Comparison of Biochemical Composition and Non-Volatile Taste Active Compounds of Back and Abdominal Muscles in Three Marine Perciform Fishes, Chromileptes altivelis, Epinephelus akaara and Acanthopagrus schlegelii

Humpback grouper Chromileptes altivelis (HG), red-spotted grouper Epinephelus akaara (RG) and black seabream Acanthopagrus schlegelii (BS) are three popular perciform fishes with an increasingly important farming industry. The prices of BS are much lower than other grouper species; however, the differences in the nutritive values of these three perciform fishes with commercial specifications have not been reported. In this study, the biochemical composition and non-volatile taste active compounds of adult HG, RG and BS were investigated. Moisture contents in BS were significantly higher than in HG and RG (p < 0.05), and relatively lower crude protein contents in BS were observed. Lipid contents of back muscle were lower than that of abdomen muscle in the three fish species. C22:6n-3 (DHA) was the major poly-unsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) in HG and BS, while the main PUFA in RG was C18:2n-6. The total healthy omega-3 fatty acid (Σn-3) profiles in HG were the highest (24.08–24.59%), followed by RG (18.24–19.06%) and BS (13.63–15.91%) (p < 0.05). Glycine was the most abundant free amino acid (FAA) in HG and RG, while lysine was the major FAA in BS. Equivalent umami concentration (EUC) values in BS were the highest, followed by HG and RG (p < 0.05). Lactic acid and PO(4)(3−) were the major organic acids and inorganic ions, respectively. In conclusion, HG and RG provided more protein and healthy omega-3 fatty acids than BS, while BS had a stronger umami taste according to the EUC values.