Lipid metabolic characteristics and marker compounds of ripened Pu-erh tea during pile fermentation revealed by LC-MS-based lipidomics

•This is the first lipidomics study on pile fermentation of ripened Pu-erh tea (RPT)•485 lipids were detected in RPT and FAHFAs were detected for the first time in tea.•Fermentation caused chlorophylls breakdown and prominent phospholipids degradation.•Microbial fermentation caused enormous formation of FFA and FAHFA.•FAHFAs were enriched from undetected level and could serve as marker compounds of RPT.