What causes Petai urine smell so bad?

Banyak orang suka makan petai sebagai ulam mentah, dibakar, direbus, sebagai perencah dalam sambal tumis, atau dalam masakan lain seperti masak lemak cili api. Makan petai memanglah sedap, tapi awas, lepas tu tahan sajalah bau hancingnya dalam bilik air atau bau mulut kita sendiri yang menyebabkan ia difatwakan sebagai makruh jika baunya tidak dihilangkan semasa solat. Namun begitu, petai mengandungi nutrien yang baik bagi kesihatan.

Kenapa bau petai (Parkia speciosa) ini unik?

Kajian yang dijalankan oleh ahli kimia mendapati petai mengandungi 4 komponen penting iaitu hidrogen sulfid, etanol, 1,2,4-trithiolane dan asetildehid. Dipercayai bahawa bau unik petai ini adalah disebabkan oleh sebatian 1,2,4-trithiolane.

What causes Petai urine smell so bad?

Some studies of the seeds suggest the sulphur-containing compounds may be responsible. Cystein and its derivatives such as glutathione, djenkolic acid and thiazolidine-4- carboxylic acid are some of these sulphur-rich compounds known to produce distinctive aroma similar to that emitted by petai eaters.

Another study analyzed Parkia speciosa seeds using sophisticated methods including Gas-Chromatography (GC) and GC-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS).The study found a total of 21 components that are highly volatile which include four major constituents; namely hydrogen sulfide (41.30%), ethanol (39.15%), 1,2,4-trithiolane (4.75%) and acetaldehyde (3.59%) Of these four major components, the characteristic smell of petai was believed to be from 1,2,4-trithiolane.

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