The effects of inulin combined with galacto-oligosaccharide on the various properties of synbiotic soy cheese containing Lactobacillus acidophilus KLDS 1.0738

This study aimed to evaluate the compatibility of L. acidophilus KLDS 1.0738 (LA-1.0738) with different prebiotic carbohydrates to develop a synbiotic soft soy cheese. It was observed that the addition of 4% (m/v) prebiotics mixture (galacto-oligosaccharide:inulin = 1:3) to soy cheese significantly improved the growth of LA-1.0738, making it no less than 8.2 log colony-forming unit (CFU)/g during the 28-day storage period, but had limited influence on the viability of S. thermophilus KLDS T1C2 (STT1C2). Meanwhile, because of the presence of prebiotics, soy cheese fermented by LA-1.0738 in co-culture with STT1C2 exhibited higher values of acidity, proteolysis and lipolysis index as well as better texture properties and sensory acceptance. These results suggested that the selected combination of prebiotics could be used as functional ingredients to manufacture soy cheese to maintain the survival of desired LA-1.0738, which contributed to improve the texture and sensory features of soy cheese.