Development and characterization of probiotic processed cheese

Abstract

Processed cheese is a popular variety of cheese and is generally devoid of lactic organisms. The incorporation of probiotic organisms into processed cheese will provide functionality and health beneficial properties to the product, along with an increased market demand. Four strains of the probiotic organism Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, namely, Lp1, Lp6, Lp7 and Lp9, were subjected to thermal stability testing, and based on the maximum thermal stability, L. plantarum (Lp9) was selected for further experimentation. Based on the moisture level (46%) and probiotic count, an inoculum of 14% (w/w) was selected for probiotic processed cheese preparation. Probiotic processed cheese was prepared by incorporating an optimized level of probiotic inoculum in normal processed cheese at 60 °C. Probiotic processed cheese had a sensory and compositional quality comparable to that of the control cheese. The product had lower meltability, hardness and cohesiveness than the control cheese. Probiotic processed cheese exhibited improved bio-functional attributes in terms of antioxidant and ACE-inhibitory activity compared with the control cheese. Probiotic processed cheese had an initial probiotic count of 7.66 log CFU g⁻¹, which remained stable in the processed cheese matrix during 35 days of refrigerated storage.