Using hydrolyzate of hairtail waste, hairtail essence was made by Maillard reaction with some amino acid and reducing Sugar. By Single factor and orthogonal experiment, the best reaction conditions were determined as follows: Xylose-glucose mass ratio1:2, sugar dosage 8%, Glycine-glutamate mass ratio 1:3, and amino acid dosage 2%, pH 5.0, temperature 110 ℃, and the time 30 min, under which the reaction solution was Reddish-brown, clarify transparency, rich in flavor of the typical characteristics of hairtail.