Evaluation of Physicochemical and Sensory Properties of Labneh Process Cheese Based on Carrageenan and Pectin

Process cheese is a combination of cheese and emulsifying salts, that has a homogeneous and uniform texture under heat influence. Labneh is one of a type of the processed cheese that uses yogurt as well. In this study, the effect of adding 0.2% carrageenan and pectin hydrochloride to the composition of Labneh was evaluated in 1, 40 and 80 days after production, in terms of physicochemical, microbial and sensory parameters. The results of the test were analyzed by SPSS software version 22, using variance experiments in a completely randomized design with factorial arrangement. The results showed that the effect of adding carrageenan, pectin and storage time on the physicochemical properties of dairy cheese was significant. The pH of all the treatments were decreased significantly until 80th day. During storage days, the dry matter of the samples which contained hydrochlorides, had a significant change compared to the controlled sample. The results of texture properties test showed that the hardness, adhesiveness, cohesiveness and springiness of the texture of the products were changed by adding hydrochlorides. Pectin treatment had the lowest hardness and adhesiveness until the day of 80th . The springiness of the carrageenan treatment was increased significantly, and the cohesiveness increased significantly by addition of the carrageenan and pectin. The results of persistence of the product showed that the samples were within the standard allowable range during the storage period, in terms of total counts of microorganisms, mold and yeast. In sensory assessments, pectin-containing treatments got high score of hardness, spreadability and overall acceptance, but did not differ significantly in taste and color from other treatments.