Micellar Casein Concentrate in Hard Cheese Production

New technologies provide comprehensive processing of raw materials, increase the yield of the finished product, and improve the marketability of dairy products. For instance, microfiltration is popular in cheese production. It makes it possible to obtain micellar casein concentrate, as well as to change the ratio between casein and whey proteins from 80:20 to 90:10 or even 95:5. This article introduces some technological recommendations for hard cheese production from a standardized mix with a micellar casein concentrate. The authors used standard research methods to study the chemical composition and properties cheese raw milk, micellar casein concentrate, standardized mixes, and hard Gruyere cheeses. Casein micelles were destroyed faster at pH = 6.1 in the test sample. The standardized mix with micellar casein concentrate developed a more elastic gel. It happened as a result of rennet coagulation due to a change in the ratio between calcium and phosphorus ions associated with casein. It was 0.54 in the standardized mix with 10% micellar casein concentrate and 0.46 in the control sample. The yield of the finished product increased by 17% due to a more active protein involvement in the rennet curd. The test sample demonstrated a longer lag phase in the development of lactic acid microorganisms. The nonfat substance in the experimental cheese sample had a 15% lower moisture content than the control sample. This variable indicated a less intensive development of starter microflora during ripening. The experimental standardized mix had a higher content of plasmin (327 nmol AMC/cm3) than the control (149 nmol AMC/cm3). The ratio indicated that the cheese sample with micellar casein concentrate ripened without starter cultures due to primary proteolysis. In this study, the optimal share of micellar casein concentrate to be added to standardized mix was 10%, and the experimental cheese was of high-quality.