Abstract：A comparison of the conventional stewing method and ultrasonic-assisted stewing was made for their efficacy
in reducing the fat content and enhancing the aroma of stewed pork belly. For this purpose, we measured the fat content,
peroxide value (POV), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARs) value and fatty acid composition of the fatty
layer. The results showed that fat content of pork belly was reduced by 13.32% after ultrasonic-assisted stewing, while
a significantly smaller decrease in fat content was observed when comparing conventionally stewed pork belly with the
raw meat (P < 0.05). The POV value rose at first and then fell during the ultrasonic-assisted stewing process, and the
TBARs value increased (P < 0.05). In addition, a significant decrease in polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content and a
significant elevation in saturated fatty acid (SFA) content at 120 min were observed along with a significant increase in
monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) content at 30 min (P < 0.05). This study conclusively demonstrates that ultrasonicassisted
stewing facilitates the reduction of fat content, speeds up fat oxidation and promotes the formation of aroma in
stewed pork belly.
