INFLUENCE OF COAGULATION CONDITIONS ON THE MINERAL COMPOSITION OF ACID-COAGULATING CHEESES

Abstract

Cheese is a product of high nutritional quality, which is created by coagulation of milk. Acid-coagulating cheeses are produced by the action of high temperatures with the addition of organic acids. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of coagulation temperature and coagulant type on the mineral composition of cheeses, obtained by heat-acid coagulation of milk. Protein coagulation was performed at a temperature of 85 °C (samples 1, 3, 5) and 95 °C (samples 2, 4, 6), and three organic acids were used as coagulants, namely: citric acid (samples 1 and 2), tartaric acid (samples 3 and 4) and acetic acid (samples 5 and 6). The content of total ash in the cheese was determined by mineralization of the samples at 550 ºC. The instrument ICP-OES Optima 8000, manufactured by Perkin Elmer, was used to determine the content of macroelements and microelements in the produced cheeses. Cheese samples produced with acetic acid had statistically significantly higher (p<0.05) amounts of total ash compared to other samples. It was found that the coagulation temperature and the type of coagulant statistically significantly (p<0.05) affect the mineral composition of the produced cheeses. The following element concentrations were determined (in mg/100 g): calcium 84.10-246.62; sodium 79.07-114.09; potassium 29.96-40.28; magnesium 5.88-11.22; phosphorus 56.86-209.23; zinc 2.75-3.41. Other identified elements were present in much smaller quantities in the tested samples.