Mozzarella Cheese: Impact of Milling pH on Functional Properties

The objective of this study was to determine the impact of milling pH and refrigerated storage time on functional properties of unmelted and melted Mozzarella cheese. A "no-brine" Mozzarella cheese-making method was used to produce cheese with homogeneous chemical composition within and among vats. Three vats of cheese, each with a different milling pH (5.40, 5.25, and 5.10), were made in 1 d. Cheese making was replicated on 3 d. Differences in milling pH alone did not affect texture profile analysis parameters of unmelted Mozzarella cheese. Melted cheese characteristics, such as meltability and free oil formation, were unaffected by the differences in milling pH. However, hardness of unmelted cheese decreased, meltability increased, apparent viscosity of melted cheese decreased, and free oil formation increased during 50 d of storage at 4C. Proteolysis of casein may be the cause of the significant cheese functionality changes during refrigerated storage.