Effect of microbial transglutaminase and gelatin on the rheological and sensory properties of low-fat cream cheese

Cream cheese is a product made from pasteurized milk and cream and has a smooth, slightly laminar texture. Due to the high nutritional value of dairy products, their production and use are increasing. But due to the high fat content of some dairy products such as cream cheese, their consumption is harmful in some cases and threatens consumer health. Therefore, demand for low-fat and low-calorie dairy products is increasing.cheese Fat is also effective in improving the appearance and texture of the cheese. Usually low-fat cheeses, had undesirable texture and flavor.therefore in this study,the effect of microbial transglutaminase and gelatin was investigated on the texture properties such as hardness, cohesiveness, resistance and chewiness , viscosity and sensory properties of low-fat cream cheese.

In this study, gelatin and transglutaminase were used in the formulation of low-fat cream cheese. Effect of gelatin levels three (0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 %) and microbial transglutaminase levels three (1, 3 and 5%) by measuring the texture rheological and sensory properties using response surface methodology and design expert software 6.0.2 version were performed. The experiment was conducted based on Box- Behnken design with three factor and three levels comprising a total of 13 tests. Sensory evaluation was done with Hedonic method. Rheological properties of texture analysis were done using the Texture Analyzer. All samples produced in the same condition and were stored at 6-4 ° C and tested on the fifth day after production.

Cream cheese properties were assessed by diagrams and models for each response were quadratic polynomial. Since the coefficient of determination (R2) for models obtained for all rheology and sensory characteristics were more than 0.8, lack of fit for all above character were not significant at the 5% level, the model were approved for fitting information. Finally, based on the rheological characteristics of the cream cheese determined the optimal production production.

Response surface designs optimization showed that desired rheological properties for cream cheese, transglutaminase concentration of 3.01%, gelatin concentration of 0.38%, were identified as optimal, Leading to a low-fat product with rheological and texture properties would be desirable similar to the full-fat control sample, and also the sensory properties evaluation revealed that the optimized sample was considerably more appreciated by consumers counterpart. Keywords: Cream cheese, Rheological properties, Low-fat, Transglutaminase, Gelatin