JP5594480B2 - Low fat processed cheese and method for producing the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a low-fat type processed cheese and a method for producing the same. Specifically, the present invention relates to a method for producing a low-fat type process cheese that is rich in cheese-like richness and umami, and has good meltability by using high-ripe raw material cheese.

  In recent years, the demand for low-fat type processed cheese has increased due to health considerations. Low-fat type processed cheese generally has a hard and voluminous texture compared to normal processed cheese, has a poor meltability, and is inferior in flavor and taste like cheese. The current situation is not widespread.

  Usually, in the manufacture of processed cheese, the action of the molten salt converts insoluble calcium-paracaseinate, which is a protein in the raw cheese, into water-soluble sodium-paracaseinate and hydrates the casein. A uniform emulsified state of fat and O / W type is formed. This emulsified state is greatly affected by the ratio of fat to protein, and the ratio of fat to protein (fat / protein ratio) in ordinary process cheese is 1 or more.

  On the other hand, in the case of low-fat type processed cheese, the protein content becomes relatively high (the fat / protein ratio becomes small) as the fat content decreases. As a result, the ratio of water-soluble sodium-paracaseinate that constitutes the structure of processed cheese is increased, the structure is more dense and uniform, and the structure is harder and less meltable than normal processed cheese. It is considered to be.

  Various attempts have been made to improve the physical properties of low-fat type processed cheese. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for producing low-fat processed cheese by using a citrate and / or monophosphate and a W / O emulsifier in combination as a molten salt. This method is to produce a natural cheese-like low-fat cheese that has a moderate oil-off during cooking and melts evenly and has stringiness, but the texture and flavor of mouth-melting in low-fat cheese It does not have an improvement effect.

  Patent Document 2 proposes a production method using an O / W type emulsifier as an auxiliary material in order to improve the melting of low-fat type processed cheese. However, depending on the type and amount of the emulsifier used, the odor and bitterness derived from the emulsifier may be felt, and although the effect of improving the mouthfeel such as melting in the mouth is described, the effect of improving the flavor side is mentioned. Absent. On the other hand, Patent Document 3 proposes a method for producing low-fat processed cheese using a proteolytic enzyme to improve the flavor and physical properties, but it is difficult to inactivate the enzyme, resulting in a bitter taste in the product. There are problems such as easy.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-276936 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-154485 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-51760

  Under such a technical background, the first object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing a low-fat processed cheese with good melting in the mouth and a low-fat processed cheese produced by this production method.

  Furthermore, the second object is to provide a method for producing low-fat processed cheese rich in richness and taste like cheese while being low-fat, and a low-fat processed cheese produced by this production method.

  In the natural cheese, the present inventors paid attention to the fact that the ripening progresses and the protein network is decomposed to weaken its structure, and as a result of intensive studies, natural cheese (hereinafter referred to as raw material cheese) as a raw material has been studied. It was found that the texture of the processed cheese can be improved by specifying (calling), and the present invention has been completed.

In the present invention, the weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen and total nitrogen (water-soluble N / total N [wt%]), which is a maturity index, in the raw cheese mixture used when producing low-fat processed cheese is 25 What was adjusted to 0.0 % or more is used as a raw cheese mixture.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to produce a low-fat processed cheese that is low in fat and has good melting in the mouth.

  Furthermore, as described above, the present invention, as described above, by using the raw material cheese specified by using the maturity index, not only in improving the melting of the mouth, but also in the flavor, there is no conventional low-fat type process cheese, It was also found that low-fat type processed cheese rich in cheese and rich in umami can be produced.

That is, the present invention
[1] In the total amount of the cheese mixture used as a raw material, use raw material cheese having a weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen to total nitrogen of 24.0% or more, add a molten salt, and include a heating and melting step. A method for producing low-fat processed cheese having a fat content of 22% by weight or less and a fat / protein ratio of 1.0 or less,
[2] The method for producing low-fat processed cheese according to [1], wherein the weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen to total nitrogen is 25.0% or more,
[3] The method for producing low-fat processed cheese according to [2], wherein the weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen to total nitrogen is 26.0% or more,
[4] The method for producing low-fat processed cheese according to [3], wherein the fat content is 17.5% by weight or less, and
[5] A low fat process produced by the production method according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the fat content is 22 wt% or less and the fat / protein ratio is 1.0 or less. cheese,
It is about.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail. However, the form described below is an example, and can be appropriately modified within a range obvious to those skilled in the art.

  The phrase “process cheese” in the present invention means cheese obtained through a heating and melting step, and is defined as including various types of process cheese, cheese food, and cheese spread.

  As raw material cheese used in the present invention, natural cheese such as gouda cheese and cheddar cheese, those obtained by reducing the fat of these, defatted cheese and the like can be used. By combining one or more of these, the weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen (water-soluble N) and total nitrogen (total N) in the total amount of raw cheese (denoted as water-soluble N / total N (%)) While adjusting to 24.0% or more, the fat content in the product is adjusted to 22% by weight or less, and the fat / protein ratio is adjusted to 1.0 or less.

  The ripeness of raw material cheese can be represented by water-soluble N / total N (%). In this specification, water-soluble nitrogen is nitrogen contained in a peptide or amino acid having a molecular weight of 5,000 or less, which is produced by degradation of a protein by an enzyme during aging. These contents increase with the progress of ripening in the raw cheese. In natural cheese that has been ripened, the protein network is highly degraded and the protein structure is weakened. By using such cheese as a raw material for processed cheese, it is considered that the structure is reflected in the structure of the processed cheese, resulting in a mouthfeel good texture. In the present invention, the water-soluble N / total N in the total amount of raw cheese is 24.0% or more and 40.0% or less, more preferably 25.0% or more and 40.0% or less, and further preferably 26.0%. % Or more and 40.0% or less, more preferably 28.0% or more and 40.0% or less, and most preferably 31.0% or more and 40.0% or less. Use in combination with cheese.

The weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen (water-soluble N) and total nitrogen (total N) in the total amount of raw cheese can be calculated by the following calculation method.
Water-soluble N / total N (%) = water-soluble nitrogen content / total nitrogen content × 100

The total nitrogen content and water-soluble nitrogen content can be measured by the following method.
[Total nitrogen content]
(1) Add 60 ml of 0.05 M sodium citrate dihydrate solution heated to about 50 ° C. to 5 g of sample (cheese), and homogenize at 8000 rpm for about 3 minutes using a rotary homogenizer.
(2) Wash the homogenizer with distilled water to 100 g.
(3) Take 2 ml of the sample solution of (2) and quantify nitrogen by the Kjeldahl method. The value obtained is the total amount of nitrogen per gram of cheese.
[Water-soluble nitrogen content]
(1) Add 60 ml of 0.05 M sodium citrate dihydrate solution heated to about 50 ° C. to 5 g of sample (cheese), and homogenize at 8000 rpm for about 3 minutes using a rotary homogenizer.
(2) Wash the homogenizer with distilled water to 100 g.
(3) While stirring with a stirrer, adjust to pH 4.40 ± 0.05 with 6N hydrochloric acid solution.
(4) Toyo Filter Paper No. Filter with 5A, take 2 ml of the filtrate and quantify nitrogen by the Kjeldahl method. The obtained value is the amount of water-soluble nitrogen per gram of cheese.

  Furthermore, in order to adjust the water-soluble N / total N (%) in the total amount of the raw cheese, the low-fat type, or the fat / protein ratio of 1.0 or less, the above raw cheese Various protein such as skim milk powder, sodium casein, rennet casein, and acid casein can be added as protein, and various fats such as milk fat and vegetable fat can be used as fat. By combining these, water-soluble N / total N (%) in the total amount of raw cheese is 24.0% or more and 40.0% or less, more preferably 25.0% or more and 40.0% or less, More preferably, it is adjusted to 26.0% or more and 40.0% or less, more preferably 28.0% or more and 40.0% or less, and most preferably 31.0% or more and 40.0% or less. The fat content in the low-fat processed cheese as a product is 0.05% by weight or more and 22% by weight or less, more preferably 0.05% by weight or more and 19.3% by weight or less, more preferably 0.05% by weight or more. The fat / protein ratio is 0.01 or more and 1.0 or less, more preferably 0.01 or more and 0.83 or less, and further preferably 0.01 or more and 0.7 or less. Adjust the ingredients so that.

  As the molten salt used in the production of the low-fat processed cheese of the present invention, a molten salt used in the production of ordinary process cheese such as phosphate, citrate, and tartrate can be used. The type of the compound of the molten salt is not particularly limited. For example, sodium phosphate, disodium phosphate, trisodium phosphate, sodium pyrophosphate, sodium hexametaphosphate, sodium tripolyphosphate, sodium tetrametaphosphate, potassium phosphate , Dipotassium phosphate, tripotassium phosphate, trisodium citrate, sodium tartrate, calcium tartrate and the like, and these can be used alone or in combination of two or more. The addition amount is preferably 0.1 to 10% by weight, and more preferably 0.5 to 3% by weight with respect to the raw material cheese.

  Moreover, various foods such as various emulsifiers and stabilizers for adjusting physical properties, pH adjusters, and spices used for flavoring can be added to the low-fat processed cheese of the present invention.

  The heating and melting step in the production method of the low-fat processed cheese of the present invention is usually performed by heating to 75 to 100 ° C, preferably 80 to 100 ° C, more preferably 85 to 100 ° C while stirring the raw materials. . As an apparatus for heating and melting the raw material in the present invention, any of a kettle type cheese emulsification pot, a horizontal cooker, a high-speed shear emulsification pot, and a continuous heat exchanger (such as a shock sterilizer and a combinator) can be used. is there. It is also possible to combine a melting apparatus with an emulsifier such as a homogenizer, an in-line mixer, or a colloid mill. In addition, although it does not specifically limit about heat-melting time, For example, in the case of a kettle type | mold cheese emulsification pot, about 8 to 10 minutes will be mentioned, and if it is a continuous heat exchanger, it will be within 1 minute. Can be adjusted.

  After the raw cheese has been heated and melted, the container is filled and then cooled, the temporary container is once filled and cooled and molded, then cut and packaged, and the mold is cooled and continuously molded and packaged The target product (process cheese) can be manufactured by any method.

EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example is given and this invention is demonstrated further in detail, this invention is not limited by this.

As shown in Table 1, low-fat processed cheese was prototyped using raw material cheese mixtures having different water-soluble N / total N (%) as maturity indices.

  Ripeness index (18%, 23%, 25%, 26%, 28%, 31%) shown in Table 1 after grinding 1.2 kg of cheddar cheese with different ripeness and 0.8 kg of defatted cheese with constant ripeness The raw material cheese mixture adjusted to become is put into a kettle-type melting kettle, 60 g of sodium tripolyphosphate is added as a molten salt, and water is added so that the water content of the final product (low-fat processed cheese) is 50% by weight. In addition, the mixture was melted by heating to 90 ° C. with stirring. After reaching 90 ° C., 225 g each was packed using parafilm and carton and refrigerated to produce the low-fat processed cheese of the present invention. Table 1 shows the fat content and fat / protein ratio of the low-fat processed cheeses of prototype numbers 1A to 1F. Various tests were performed after the low-fat processed cheeses of prototype numbers 1A to 1F were sufficiently cooled for 3 days.

  For the trial production numbers 1A to 1F, sensory evaluation (melted in the mouth, umami) was performed by a specialized panelist.

  About trial manufacture numbers 1A-1F, the umami ingredient which exists in cheese was evaluated. The umami component was evaluated by measuring the PTA-soluble nitrogen content (denoted as PTA-soluble N content) in the low-fat processed cheese, which is the final product, and calculating the amount of PTA-soluble nitrogen in 1 g of the final product. PTA-soluble nitrogen is nitrogen contained in low molecular weight peptides and amino acids having a molecular weight of about 600 or less, which is produced by degrading proteins with enzymes, and can be used as an indicator of the amount of umami components present in cheese. it can. The measuring method of the PTA soluble nitrogen content in cheese is as follows.

[PTA soluble nitrogen content]
(1) Add 60 ml of 0.05 M sodium citrate dihydrate solution heated to about 50 ° C. to 5 g of sample (cheese), and homogenize at 8000 rpm for about 3 minutes using a rotary homogenizer.
(2) Wash the homogenizer with distilled water to 100 g.
(3) While stirring with a stirrer, adjust to pH 4.40 ± 0.05 with 6N hydrochloric acid solution.
(4) Toyo Filter Paper No. Filter with 5A and collect 10 ml from the filtrate.
(5) Add 6 ml of 25% sulfuric acid solution to (4) and 4 ml of 12.5% phosphotungstic acid (PTA) solution, stir well, and let stand at room temperature for 16 hours.
(6) Toyo filter paper no. Filter with 5A, take 2 ml of the filtrate, and quantify nitrogen by the Kjeldahl method. The obtained value is the amount of PTA-soluble nitrogen per gram of cheese.

  About the trial production numbers 1A-1F, the hardness of the final product was evaluated. The hardness was evaluated by the penetration hardness of a rheometer. The penetration hardness was measured according to a conventional method using a rheometer (manufactured by Fudo Kogyo Co., Ltd.). For the measurement of the penetration hardness, a cylindrical plunger with a diameter of 3 mm was used, and the ascending / descending speed of the sample stage was 5 cm / min.

  Table 2 shows the evaluation results of the prototype numbers 1A to 1F.

  As a result of sensory evaluation, the prototype (1C, 1D, 1E, 1F) using a raw material with a maturity index of the raw cheese mixture (water-soluble N / total N) of 25% or more has a good melt in the mouth, and is rich in cheese It was rich in umami. Prototypes (1C, 1D, 1E, 1F) using raw materials having a maturity index (water-soluble N / total N) of 25% or more are raw materials having a maturity index (water-soluble N / total N) of 23% or less. Compared with the prototypes (1A, 1B) using No. 1, the penetration hardness showed a small value and the PTA soluble nitrogen content showed a high value. These objectively show that the prototype using a raw material with a maturity index (water-soluble N / total N) of 25% or more has a good mouth melt and is rich in cheese-like richness and deliciousness. It was consistent with the sensory evaluation.

  Process cheese was prototyped with the contents shown in Table 3.

  Kettle-type melting of raw cheese mixture prepared by crushing 1.2 kg of cheddar cheese with different ripeness and 0.8 kg of defatted cheese with constant ripeness to the maturity index shown in Table 3 (18%, 25%) Into the kettle, 60g of sodium tripolyphosphate was added as a molten salt, water was added so that the final product (process cheese) had a water content of 50% by weight, and in 2A, O / W type emulsifier (succinic acid mono (Glyceryl stearate) was added so that it might become 0.5 weight%, and it heated and melted to 90 degreeC, stirring. After reaching 90 ° C., 225 g each was packed using parafilm and carton and refrigerated. After sufficiently cooling for 3 days, the penetration hardness (10 ° C.) and the PTA soluble nitrogen content of the prototype were measured in the same manner as in Example 1, and sensory evaluation (melted in the mouth, umami) was performed by a specialized panelist. The results are shown in Table 4.

  Prototype No. 2A is manufactured by adding an emulsifier to 1A in Example 1 above. The addition of an emulsifier improved the melting of the mouth even with low-ripe raw cheese, but the taste was not satisfactory. On the other hand, 2B with a maturity of 25% and no added emulsifier has good meltability in the mouth, and also has a good evaluation of flavor (umami) by sensory evaluation, and also has a PTA soluble nitrogen content of 2B as an indicator of umami. Showed a value higher than 2A. From these results, the prototype (2B) using a raw material with a maturity index (water-soluble N / total N) of 25.0% is equivalent to the prototype 2A using an emulsifier without adding an emulsifier. In addition to having a good melt in the mouth, it can be seen that it has a cheese-like richness and umami.

  As shown in Table 5, the mixing ratio of the raw cheese was changed, and low-fat processed cheeses having different fat contents were made as trial products.

  Cheddar cheese and defatted cheese of constant maturity were pulverized and mixed at different ratios, and the raw cheese mixture was adjusted to have the fat content of the final product (low-fat processed cheese) shown in Table 5. Add 2.0 kg of raw cheese mixture to kettle-type melting kettle, add 60 g of sodium tripolyphosphate as molten salt, add water so that the moisture content of the final product (low fat processed cheese) is 50% by weight, While stirring, the mixture was heated to 90 ° C. and melted. After reaching 90 ° C., 225 g each was packed using parafilm and carton and refrigerated to produce the low-fat processed cheese of the present invention. After sufficiently cooling for 3 days, sensory evaluation (melted in the mouth, umami) was performed by a specialized panelist. The results are shown in Table 6.

  All samples with different fat contents and fat / protein ratios were well melted in the mouth and had a cheese-like richness and taste.

  28 kg of crushed gouda cheese, 36 kg of cheddar cheese, and 36 kg of defatted cheese were mixed to obtain raw cheese. The maturity index of the raw cheese mixture was 24%. To this, 3 kg of sodium tripolyphosphate as a molten salt and water were added so that the final product (low-fat processed cheese) had a water content of 49% by weight, and the mixture was stirred while blowing steam in a kettle-type melting kettle. It was heated up to ° C and melted. After reaching 89 ° C., it was filled into a 20 g portion by a cheese filling machine. The product after cooling had a fat content of 18.5% and a fat / protein ratio of 0.72, and had a mouth-melting and cheese-like richness and umami taste similar to a processed cheese product having a normal fat content.

Although the present invention has been described in detail and with reference to specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
This application is based on a Japanese patent application filed on Feb. 24, 2009 (Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-040156), the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

  According to the method of the present invention, it is possible to provide a low-fat type processed cheese that is low in fat and melts well in the mouth and is rich in cheese-like richness and umami.

Claims (4)

In the total amount of the cheese mixture used as a raw material, a raw material cheese having a weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen to total nitrogen of 25.0 % or more is used, a molten salt is added, and a heating and melting step is included. A method for producing low-fat processed cheese having a fat content of 22% by weight or less and a fat / protein ratio of 1.0 or less. The method for producing low-fat processed cheese according to claim 1 , wherein the weight ratio of water-soluble nitrogen to total nitrogen is 26.0% or more. The manufacturing method of the low-fat process cheese of Claim 2 whose fat content is 17.5 weight% or less. The low-fat processed cheese manufactured by the manufacturing method of any one of Claims 1-3 whose fat content is 22 weight% or less and whose fat / protein ratio is 1.0 or less.