The effect of lowering salt on the physicochemical, microbiological and sensory properties of São João cheese of Pico Island

Abstract

São João cheeses with varying curd dry salting treatments were made with decreasing levels of salt (sodium chloride): 4 (control), 3, 2 and 1% (w/w), along with the salt-free version. The cheeses were ripened at 11°C over a 40-day period, and the effect of lowering salt on the physicochemical, microbiological and sensory properties of the cheese was studied. Reduced salt resulted in a concomitant moisture decrease with protein increase, ash and sodium reduction among experimental cheeses at the same ripening day, but there were no significant differences in pH, acidity and fat, or in the microbiological quality. Triangle tests indicated perceptible differences between test and control cheeses at the level of 2% NaCl (w/w) or less, but not with the cheese salted with 3 g NaCl/100 g. Considering the sensory, the physicochemical and the microbiological results, the cheese formulated at 3% NaCl (w/w) (presenting a reduction of 25% in salt) is feasible on an industrial scale, being indistinguishable by the regular consumer.

Substitution of sodium chloride by potassium chloride in São João cheese of Pico Island

“…The results are also in contrast with the findings of Lindsay et al (1982) who reported that reduced-sodium Cheddar cheese, containing 1.25% or 1.5% sodium/potassium chloride (1:1), revealed lower saltiness and higher bitterness intensities, as well as more off-flavor than the simple low-salt counterparts, seemingly attributable to the added KCl according to this author. Furthermore, the effect observed in the present study is, again, in contrast to an earlier work of Soares et al (2015) on the effect of decreasing salt, where it was found that São João experimental cheeses with 50%, 75%, and 100% salt reduction were substantially different from the full-sodium control. Therefore, a simple 25% NaCl reduction could easily be feasible as previously found by Soares et al (2015) and probably easily marketed in terms of consumer liking.…”

“…Moreover, it was found that there was a slight dip in the protein content of the (1:3) NaCl/KCl-salted cheese at 8 and 40 days of ripening, probably because of a higher resistance to a certain degree in the outflow of whey in this particular cheese (Grummer et al 2012). In general, this finding is similar to that obtained in a previous work by Soares et al (2015), who reported a significant protein increase with sodium reduction at each sampling date throughout ripening. The effect observed by these authors was most likely due to an excessive dehydration of protein cheese matrix as a result from very low salt concentrations applied to the experimental cheeses.…”

“…A significant (p < 0.05) increase of titratable acidity during cheese ripening with the sharpest lying between the 17th and 28th day was observed similarly to the report of Soares et al (2015) on the effect of simply lowering sodium on São João cheese. The same was also found by Ayyash and Shah (2010) who reported that lactic acid increased significantly during storage of Halloumi cheese kept in brine at 4°C (although this is a different cheese variety).…”

“…Therefore, the microbial counts of São João cheeses made with NaCl/KCl blends or KCl only did not differ, similarly to the work of Soares et al (2015) by lowering salt solely in São João cheese. Hence, the substitution of NaCl by KCl does not seem to bring any downside concerning the microbiological quality of São João cheese, pointing, however, some post-pasteurization hygienic flaws which can be overcome through the implementation of better cleaning and disinfection programs along with Table 1 good manufacturing and personnel hygiene practices by food handlers (Kousta et al 2010).…”

“…The same was also found by Ayyash and Shah (2010) who reported that lactic acid increased significantly during storage of Halloumi cheese kept in brine at 4°C (although this is a different cheese variety). Conversely, there was a very slight overall pH reduction over ripening, although no statistical difference was found similarly to Soares et al (2015). This biochemical event is mainly related to the starter culture added prior to coagulation (Cichoscki et al 2002), where lactic acid is produced from lactose metabolism by lactic acid bacteria (Ayyash and Shah 2010).…”