Abstract
Kefir is a dairy product that can be prepared from different milk types, such as goat, buffalo, sheep, camel, or cow via microbial fermentation (inoculating milk with kefir grains). As such, kefir contains various bacteria and yeasts which influence its chemical and sensory characteristics. A mixture of two kinds of milk promotes kefir sensory and rheological properties aside from improving its nutritional value. Additives such as inulin can also enrich kefir’s health qualities and organoleptic characters. Several metabolic products are generated during kefir production and account for its distinct flavour and aroma: Lactic acid, ethanol, carbon dioxide, and aroma compounds such as acetoin and acetaldehyde. During the storage process, microbiological, physicochemical, and sensory characteristics of kefir can further undergo changes, some of which improve its shelf life. Kefir exhibits many health benefits owing to its antimicrobial, anticancer, gastrointestinal tract effects, gut microbiota modulation and anti-diabetic effects. The current review presents the state of the art relating to the role of probiotics, prebiotics, additives, and different manufacturing practices in the context of kefir’s physicochemical, sensory, and chemical properties. A review of kefir’s many nutritional and health benefits, underlying chemistry and limitations for usage is presented.
Highlights
Kefir is a fermented milk drink with an acidic taste and creamy consistency produced by bacterial fermentation of kefir grains
Lactobacillus isolates from kefir grains and the administration of Lactobacillus plantarum Lp09 and Lp45 for 4 weeks in rats fed an enriched cholesterol diet showed significantly decreased cholesterol, total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels in serum as well as cholesterol and TC levels in the liver compared to the control group
Hypercholesterolemic rats feeding with Lactobacillus plantarum (Lp27) from Tibetan kefir grains at a dose of 109 CFU/d for 4 weeks led to reduced LDL and TC levels, without affecting HDL
Summary
Kefir is a fermented milk drink with an acidic taste and creamy consistency produced by bacterial fermentation of kefir grains. A backslopping strategy is employed to increase kefir beverage generation, with a 50-fold production yield increase while maintaining the same kefir characteristics (physicochemical, microbiological and nutritional value) as traditional kefir except for the differences in the lactobacillus kefir population (7.94 vs 8.89 log CFU/mL) and decreased yeast count (7.1 vs 5.22 log CFU/mL) [17]. This method is considered cheap and reliable, especially in less developed countries, with only a few shortcomings observed in product consistency and microbiological diversity. Due to kefir’s short shelf life and high storage and packaging costs, the trend towards having dry
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