Mozzarella Functionality Part 2
Last month we looked at the impact of changing moisture in mozzarella type cheeses. This month we will discuss two other key functionality of mozzarella – browning and free oil formation.
Browning
Browning occurs when unfermented milk sugars react with some amino acids and peptides during heating. Although some browning is required the extent required differs between customers and thus needs to be controlled by the manufacturer.
Browning can be affected by
- Starter culture – Traditionally, a mix of S thermophilus and Lb bulgaricus has been used to make pizza cheese. Substituting the Lb bulgaricus with Lb helveticus has been shown to be effective in reducing browning because of its ability to ferment galactose. Depending on your customers preferences you can vary the degree of browning by varying the mix of Lb bulgaricus or Lb helveticus in the mix. Your starter culture rep should be able to help with this.
- Age - As cheese matures the level of browning tends to increase.
- Washing - Washing curd with warm water removes some lactose resulting in less browning.
- Salt and moisture - Browning also follows excessive blister formation during cooking. Low moisture and high salt in cheese will lead to high blister formation.
Free Oil formation
Free oil formation is an issue when large pools of oil form on the top of pizza during cooking. This is unsightly and not pleasant to eat. Free oil can be controlled by the following:
|
1 |
Fat content or more precisely fat in dry matter |
| 2 | Salt content. As salt content deceases then free oil increases, thus if you want to make a higher FDM product then you may need to add extra salt or increase brining time to reduce the free oil. |
| 3 | Proteolysis - Excessive protein breakdown can also lead to free oil formation. Excess proteolysis can be caused by some highly proteolytic rennets or starter cultures, particularly if stretching temperatures of less than 60°C are used. Storing pizza cheese at high temperatures will also accelerate ripening and lead to more proteolysis. |
Wayne's World
Wayne Austin has been involved in cheese manufacture for 30 years, including time as a cheesemaker, factory supervision, quality management and R&D. Wayne has recently studied Cheese Affinage and Defects at the Vermont Institute of Artisan Cheese.
