Evaluation of freeze-dried kefir coculture as starter in feta-type cheese production.

ABSTRACT: The use of freeze-dried kefir coculture as a starter in the production of feta-type cheese was investigated. Maturation of the produced cheese at 4 degrees C was monitored for up to 70 days, and the effects of the starter culture, the salting method, and the ripening process on quality characteristics were studied. The use of kefir coculture as a starter led to increased lactic acid concentrations and decreased pH values in the final product associated with significantly higher conversion rates compared to salted rennet cheese. Determination of bacterial diversity at the end of the ripening process in salted kefir and rennet cheeses by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis technology, based on both DNA and RNA analyses, suggested a potential species-specific inhibition of members of the

SUBMITTER: Kourkoutas Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1563647 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature