Lactic Acid Fermentation with Rice Koji as a Carbon Source

Abstract

Recently, several health benefits of rice wine, makgeolli, were known due to the interest on the traditional Korean liquor and the researches on the rice wine are increasing. Organic acids produced during the process of rice wine fermentation play important roles in the taste and flavor. In this study, we have examined the optimal conditions for lactic acid production in rice koji as a carbon source. Skim milk was also used as a supplementary ingredient for the optimization of lactic acid fermentation. Bacterial growth of Lactobacillus sakei was monitored under this condition. The pH, acidity of the culture and the ethanol tolerance of this bacterium were also tested. Through these experiments, we were able to optimize the growth condition of lactic acid bacteria by the addition of skim milk. This was also able to affect the change of pH, acidity, sugar concentration and alcohol tolerance, which might contribute to the improvement of the quality of rice wine. The optimal condition for the growth was 2 days with 10% (w/v) of skim milk concentration. With these results, it was confirmed that rice koji was an effective carbon source for the growth of lactic acid bacteria.