Comparison of Four Procedures of Cheese Meltability Evaluation

Two traditional cheese meltability tests, the Schreiber and Arnott, as well as two microwave modifications thereof were compared on a variety of mild and sharp cheddar, process American, and mozzarella cheeses and various process cheese products. There was a marked lack of correlation between the Schreiber and Arnott results indicating that at least two material properties control meltability. The effects of variations in heating time and oven temperature in the nonmicrowave tests and heating time in the microwave tests were determined. Differential scanning calorimetry did not reveal differences useful in predicting melting behavior.