Transglutaminase induced whey cheese production: impact of different ratios on yield, texture, and sensory properties

The yield of whey cheese production is often low, and its texture is often soft. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of different ratios (2 U/g protein and 5 U/g protein) of microbial transglutaminase (mTG) on composition (dry matter, ash, protein, and fat), yield, and acidity (pH and lactic acid), microbiological properties (Lactococcus, Lactobacillus and total aerobic mesophilic bacteria counts), texture profile, electrophoretic properties (SDS-PAGE) and sensory properties (appearance, texture and taste) of whey cheese. The samples with 2 U/g protein mTG had better properties in terms of yield, hardness and sensory values. The results from SDS-PAGE also showed that the sample with 2 U/g protein mTG had more cross-linking than the sample with 5 U/g protein mTG. In comparison, the sample with 5 U/g protein mTG had a lower number of lactic acid bacteria and poor sensory characteristics. These results indicate that the addition of mTG in an appropriate amount (2 U/g protein) can improve the yield, texture profile, and sensory properties of whey cheese, while excessive addition of mTG can negatively affect these properties.