Abstract
Red-Veined Cheese is an experimental internal mold-ripened cheese using red koji powder as the red starter. The objective of this study was to characterize the physicochemical parameters, microorganisms, proteolysis, lipolysis, and volatile profile of the cheese during 33 days of ripening. The gross composition was 56.7% (w/w) for total solids, 45.8% (w/w) for fat-in-dry matter, 2.58% (w/w) for salt content and 37.8% (w/w) for protein. The pH increased from 4.88 to 5.23 during ripening. The Monascus density first rose and then fell, while total mesophilic bacteria count declined steadily throughout the maturation. Proteolysis degree in experimental group was significantly higher than in control group without inoculation of red koji powder. Analysis of the fatty acid profile showed that the internal Monascus-fermentation also promoted lipolysis. A total of 63 volatile compounds, including 12 ketones, 14 alcohols, 15 acids, 13 esters, 5 aldehydes, 3 lactones and 1 phenol, were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) coupled with headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME). The main chemical groups of volatile compounds were ketones, alcohols, acids and esters whereas aldehydes, lactones, and phenols represented only minor components. At the end of ripening, the levels of ketones, alcohols, esters were significantly higher in the experimental cheese compared with the control. Our results therefore show that the internal Monascus-fermentation is not only a suitable technology to form red veins in the paste but also an effective method to impact the composition of volatile compounds in cheese, which can thus distinguish it from other internal mold-ripened cheeses and surface-ripened Monascus-fermented cheese.
Highlights
Cheese is one of the most diverse varieties of dairy products
Results are indicated as Means ± SD with different superscript lowercase letters were significantly different among ripening periods within the rows each cell (p < 0.05); Means ± SD with different superscript capital letters were significantly different among cheese samples within the column of the same ripening period (p < 0.05)
At day 33, Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) only represented ∼5% of Total Free fatty acids (FFAs) in the experimental cheese, which may be due to their consumption by the mold, or more likely, converted to other volatile compounds to contribute to cheese flavor [30]
Summary
Cheese is one of the most diverse varieties of dairy products. It has become an important contributor to nutritional intake in public health interests because it contains abundant nutrients for the human body including proteins, fat, bioactive peptides, amino acids, free fatty acids and etc [1, 2]. Physico-Chemical-Microbial Characteristics in Red-Veined Cheese demand for functional dairy products put forward higher requirements. Strains belonging to this genera have a time-honored history of being used to prepare fermented foods before they were found to be an important source of various functional compounds [4]. Red koji refers to solid fermenting steamed rice with red koji-mold, it is the first Monascus-fermented food. It is an important ingredient of Asian fermented foods. Red koji was used as the red starter to prepare several fermented foods including red-koji wine, vinegar and furu [4], it is be used as an alternative to statins for the treatment of dyslipidemia [5]
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