Characterization of Quark-like probiotic cheese produced from a mixture of buffalo milk and cow milk

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the potential application of buffalo milk in the production of Quark-like cheese enriched with probiotic cultures of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus. Compositional, physicochemical, textural, aromatic, and sensory attributes of the cheese samples prepared using different ratios of buffalo milk and cow milk were investigated. The results revealed significant differences among the analysed cheese samples with respect to the dry matter, fat and protein content. The cheese samples prepared using only buffalo milk had the highest contents of dry matter, fat, and protein compared to the cheese samples prepared using only cow milk. Titratable acidity of the cheese samples was in the range of 0.91 to 1.52 (lactic acid %), white the water-soluble nitrogen content varied between 7.88 % and 1122 % during storage. Increasing the proportion of cow milk in cheese caused an increase in the L* and Hue colour values. The cheese samples prepared from buffalo milk showed the highest value for hardness, while the lowest hardness value was observed for cheese samples prepared using cow milk. All cheese samples had higher levels of acetic acid, butanoic acid, 3-methyl butanoic acid, and hexanoic acid compared to other volatile compounds. L. acidophilus and L. rhamnosus counts during storage were in the range of 9.02-9.18 log CFU/g and 9.12-9.30 log CFU/g, respectively. The sour taste was determined to be dominant in all cheese samples, followed by the sweet taste. Creamy, cooked, and fermented flavours were the most prominent flavours in all cheese samples.