Influence of the starter culture on the characteristics of kelle cheese

In this research, Kelle cheese was manufactured without starter cultures from raw milk and using 2 different commercial starter culture mixtures (Str. thermophilus + Lb. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Str. thermophilus + Lb. helveticus) from pasteurized milk and the experimental cheeses were ripened for 90 days.It was found that the use of starter cultures have significantly influenced to pH, titration acidity, dry-matter salt, total free fatty acid, water-soluble nitrogen, index of ripening to water soluble nitrogen ratio, 12% TCA-soluble nitrogen, and index of ripening to 12% TCA-soluble nitrogen of the cheese (p<0.05). It was found that ripening period have significantly influenced to pH, titration acidity, dry-matter, fat, dry-matter fat, protein, dry-matter protein, salt, dry-matter salt, total free fatty acid, water-soluble nitrogen, index of ripening to water soluble nitrogen ratio, 12% TCA-soluble nitrogen, index of ripening to 12% TCA-soluble nitrogen, casein nitrogen, ratio of protease-peptone nitrogen, amount of total free amino acid of the cheese (p<0.05). It was found that interaction of starter culture and maturation period have significantly influenced to pH, fat, protein, dry-matter protein, 12% TCA-soluble nitrogen, index of ripening to 12% TCA-soluble nitrogen of the cheese (p<0.05). In the cheeses B and C, the proteins were degraded to lower moleculer weight peptides/aminoacids, compared to the control cheese (A).In microbiological aspect; the cheeses B and C differed from the cheese A which is produced without starter cultures (p<0.05). While incorporation of starter cultures have significantly affected the number of coliform, yeast and lactic acid bacteria; ripening period affected the number of yeast and lactic acid bacteria. Though interaction of starter culture and ripening period have negligible effect on sensory properties (p>0.05), the cheese C, produced by using Str. thermophilus+Lb. helveticus was found to be the most desirable.