The present study was designed to investigate the effects of sodium glutamate supplementation on growth performance and meat flavor of yellow-feathered broilers. A total of 800 Lingnan yellow-feathered broilers (42-day-old) were used in this experiment. They were allotted to 4 groups on the basis of body weight and each group consisted of 5 replicates with 40 chickens in each replicate. Four groups were supplemented with 0, 270, 540 and 1 080 mg/kg sodium glutamate in the basal diet. The experiment was ended when the broilers reached 63 days old. The results showed as follows: supplementation of sodium glutamate did not result in significant differences in growth performance (P>0.05), and also did not result in significant differences in pH, L*, a*, drip loss, water holding capacity, shear force and intramuscular fat content of muscle (P>0.05), but significantly increased muscle b* of yellow-feathered broilers (P<0.05). Supplemented with 540 mg/kg sodium glutamate in diets improved the odor, flavor and juiciness of muscle (P<0.05), and also increased the contents of muscle flavor amino acids, i. e. glycine, glutamine, aspartic acid, alanine, methionine and proline (P<0.05). Supplemented with 270 and 1 080 mg/kg sodium glutamate in diets did not affect the odor, flavor, juiciness and flavor amino acid contents of muscle (P>0.05), but 1 080 mg/kg sodium glutamate supplementation increased the muscle tenderness (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in glutathione, sulfhedryl, malondialdehyde contents and total antioxidative capability in serum and muscle, serum lactic acid content, and muscle inosinic acid content among the 4 groups (P>0.05), but the glutamic acid content in serum and muscle was significantly increased by sodium glutamate supplementation (P<0.05). Supplemented with 540 and 1 080 mg/kg sodium glutamate in diets increased the gene expression of adenosine monophosphate deaminase 1 (AMPD1) (P<0.05). In conclusion, supplementation with 540 mg/kg sodium glutamate can increase the meat flavor and then improve the meat quality by increasing the flavor amino acid contents and related gene expression in muscle of yellow-feathered broilers, and the growth performance is not decreased. ［Chinese Journal of Animal Nutrition，2011，23（3）：410-416］