Impact of exopolysaccharide-containing base cheese on characteristics of reduced fat process cheese.

Fat reduction in cheese is associated with many textural and functional defects. The quality attributes of process cheese are greatly influenced by the composition and nature of base cheeses. The objective of this study was to evaluate textural, viscoelastic and functional characteristics of reduced fat process cheese made from exopolysaccharide (EPS)- containing Cheddar cheese. Reduced fat process cheeses were manufactured using a 50/50 mixture of young (2 days) and aged (6 months) reduced fat Cheddar cheeses made with EPS-producing or non-producing cultures. In addition, a full fat process cheese made with no EPS was also employed in this study. Moisture and fat were standardized to 40 and 32.5% for full fat cheese and 49 and 21% for reduced fat cheese respectively. Reduced fat process cheeses made from Cheddar cheese containing no EPS were firmer, and more chewy and gummy than those made from EPS-positive Cheddar cheese. Reduced fat process cheese manufactured from EPS-positive Cheddar cheese had lower viscoelastic moduli and increased meltability. Creep/recovery test showed that EPS-positive process cheese was more deformable and did not recover its original structure as much as the EPS-negative one did. Sensory results correlated well with instrumental data. The highest sensory scores were obtained when both young and aged cheeses contained EPS. Full fat cheese was harder, chewier, gummier and less deformable than reduced fat cheeses, which might be due to the lower moisture content in the former cheese. In conclusion, EPS-containing base cheese could be used to improve texture and functionality of reduced fat process cheese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]