Yogucheeses – yoghurts fortified with melted cheese: microstructural, textural and rheological characterisation

Yoghurts are generally enriched with dairy protein powders. This research developed a cheese-fortified yoghurt – yogucheese. First, Emmental cheese was dispersed into submillimetre particles by melting it in a hot paste of gelatinised corn starch, or waxy rice starch, in milk, forming a melted cheese base (MCB). This MCB was mixed with further milk in different proportions, before addition of starter culture and fermentation. The products were then characterised in terms of macronutrient composition and physical properties. The new yoghurts had a firmer gel structure, lower syneresis and higher viscosity than controls, and were stable for 14 days.