Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk
Making cheese from donkey milk is considered unfeasible, due to difficulties in coagulation and curd forming. Two recent studies have reported the protocols for making fresh cheese by using camel chymosin or calf rennet, but the chemical and sensory characteristics of the products were not thoroughl...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2019-12-01
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| Series: | Foods |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/9/1/16 |
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| author | Michele Faccia Giuseppe Gambacorta Giovanni Martemucci Graziana Difonzo Angela Gabriella D’Alessandro |
| author_facet | Michele Faccia Giuseppe Gambacorta Giovanni Martemucci Graziana Difonzo Angela Gabriella D’Alessandro |
| author_sort | Michele Faccia |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Making cheese from donkey milk is considered unfeasible, due to difficulties in coagulation and curd forming. Two recent studies have reported the protocols for making fresh cheese by using camel chymosin or calf rennet, but the chemical and sensory characteristics of the products were not thoroughly investigated. The present paper aims to give a further contribution to the field, by investigating cheesemaking with microbial rennet and evaluating the chemical composition, total fatty acid, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and sensory profile of the resultant product. Six trials were undertaken at laboratory scale on donkey milk from a Martina Franca ass, by applying the technological scheme as reported for calf rennet, with some modifications. Bulk cow milk was used as a control. Donkey milk coagulated rapidly, but the curd remained soft, and was only suitable for making fresh cheese; differently, cow milk coagulated almost instantaneously under these strong technological conditions, giving rise to a semi-hard curd in very short time. The moisture level of donkey cheese was almost the same as reported in the literature, whereas the yield was higher, probably due to the high protein content of the milk used. The total fatty acid composition of cheese presented some differences with respect to milk, mostly consisting in a higher presence of saturated compounds. A connection with a better retention of the large sized fat globules into the curd was hypothesised and discussed. The VOC analyses, performed by solid-phase micro extraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, allowed the identification of 11 compounds in milk and 18 in cheese. The sensory characteristics of donkey cheese were strongly different with respect to the control, and revealed unique and pleasant flavours. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T18:26:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d0d58f20779749b7908cb4cc161d6662 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2304-8158 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T18:26:16Z |
| publishDate | 2019-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Foods |
| spelling | doaj.art-d0d58f20779749b7908cb4cc161d66622022-12-22T00:55:05ZengMDPI AGFoods2304-81582019-12-01911610.3390/foods9010016foods9010016Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey MilkMichele Faccia0Giuseppe Gambacorta1Giovanni Martemucci2Graziana Difonzo3Angela Gabriella D’Alessandro4Department of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences, University of Bari, Via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, ItalyDepartment of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences, University of Bari, Via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, ItalyDepartment of Agro-Environmental and Territorial Sciences, University of Bari, Via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, ItalyDepartment of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences, University of Bari, Via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, ItalyDepartment of Agro-Environmental and Territorial Sciences, University of Bari, Via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, ItalyMaking cheese from donkey milk is considered unfeasible, due to difficulties in coagulation and curd forming. Two recent studies have reported the protocols for making fresh cheese by using camel chymosin or calf rennet, but the chemical and sensory characteristics of the products were not thoroughly investigated. The present paper aims to give a further contribution to the field, by investigating cheesemaking with microbial rennet and evaluating the chemical composition, total fatty acid, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and sensory profile of the resultant product. Six trials were undertaken at laboratory scale on donkey milk from a Martina Franca ass, by applying the technological scheme as reported for calf rennet, with some modifications. Bulk cow milk was used as a control. Donkey milk coagulated rapidly, but the curd remained soft, and was only suitable for making fresh cheese; differently, cow milk coagulated almost instantaneously under these strong technological conditions, giving rise to a semi-hard curd in very short time. The moisture level of donkey cheese was almost the same as reported in the literature, whereas the yield was higher, probably due to the high protein content of the milk used. The total fatty acid composition of cheese presented some differences with respect to milk, mostly consisting in a higher presence of saturated compounds. A connection with a better retention of the large sized fat globules into the curd was hypothesised and discussed. The VOC analyses, performed by solid-phase micro extraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, allowed the identification of 11 compounds in milk and 18 in cheese. The sensory characteristics of donkey cheese were strongly different with respect to the control, and revealed unique and pleasant flavours.https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/9/1/16cheesemakingdonkey milkfatty acidssensory analysisvoc |
| spellingShingle | Michele Faccia Giuseppe Gambacorta Giovanni Martemucci Graziana Difonzo Angela Gabriella D’Alessandro Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk Foods cheesemaking donkey milk fatty acids sensory analysis voc |
| title | Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk |
| title_full | Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk |
| title_fullStr | Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk |
| title_full_unstemmed | Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk |
| title_short | Chemical-Sensory Traits of Fresh Cheese Made by Enzymatic Coagulation of Donkey Milk |
| title_sort | chemical sensory traits of fresh cheese made by enzymatic coagulation of donkey milk |
| topic | cheesemaking donkey milk fatty acids sensory analysis voc |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/9/1/16 |
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