STUDIES ON UTILIZATION OF INDIAN COTTAGE CHEESE WHEY IN WHEAT BREAD MANUFACTURE

Abstract

ABSTRACT Indian cottage cheese (paneer) whey (6.39% total solids [TS]) was vacuum concentrated to 15 and 26% TS levels and utilized in wheat bread manufacture. The bread prepared from the dough incorporated with 26% TS concentrated paneer whey (CPW) was yellowish and possessed a firm and “crumbly” crumb which was least accepted. Whereas, the bread prepared from 15% TS CPW dough was cream colored, and displayed acceptable sensory quality with an overall acceptance score of 7.32/9.0. CPW (15% TS) incorporation enhanced loaf volume by about 62 mL, but the disadvantage was that it considerably slowed down the dough proofing time, almost by two times. Three methods were suggested to restore proofing time, viz. enhanced water level in the dough, enhanced fermentation temperature (40C) and enhanced yeast level (6%). Satisfactory proofing time could be obtained using any of these methods. The shelf life of the bread remained unaffected by whey incorporation. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Indian cottage cheese, commonly known as paneer, is widely popular in the Indian subcontinent. It is produced and marketed on a large scale by various government and privately run dairies. Its manufacture involves coagulating the hot milk by citric acid, filtering out the coagulum, pressing the coagulum in a stainless steel press for 15–30 min and dipping the pressed coagulum in chilled water (5–10C) for 1–2 h. This process results in the generation of large quantities of whey as a byproduct. It is a common practice for the dairies to release the whey directly into the drainage system without any pretreatment. This leads to enormous pollution in the areas surrounding the dairies, and also puts load on effluent treatment plants. It also results in enormous losses in terms of valuable nutrients like lactose, proteins and minerals, which developing countries like India and Pakistan cannot afford to lose. In this background, studies on effective utilization of whey assume importance. This project is aimed at developing a suitable technology for complete utilization of whey in wheat bread manufacture. The outcome of the study is significant for small-scale bakers in the Indian subcontinent because it offers a technology to prepare common bread utilizing whole whey. Utilization of whey in this manner not only enhances nutritive value of bread, but also helps in mitigating the problems of whey disposal at industry level.