Relations Among Manufacturing Procedures and Properties of Cottage Cheese

A survey of six large cottage cheese plants provided information regarding manufacturing procedures and composition and physical properties (density, firmness, and size distribution) of small curd cottage cheese.Manufacturing procedures differed greatly in amounts and activity of starter, use of coagulator and calcium chloride, and cooking, washing, and creaming procedures.Ranges of plant means for some manufacturing conditions were: total solids in skim milk as set, 8.8 to 9.3%; starter, 2.0 to 10.5%; setting temperature, 29.0 to 32.7 C (84 to 91 F); setting time, 260 to 390 min; cutting pH, 4.53 to 4.70; heal time, 2 to 25 rain; mechanical agitation, 30 to 93 rain; cooking time, 47 to 93 rain; cooking temperature, 50.6 to 56.1 C (123 to 133 F); cooking rate, .20 to .58C (.34 to 1.0 F)/min; water used for curd washing, 4.7 to 15.2 liters/kg curd; cream dressing, 12.4 to 15.2% fat and 22.2 to 23.2% total solids; creaming ratio, .37 to .51 kg dressing/kg curd.For some variables (e.g., setting temperature and cutting pH) within-plant and between-plant differences were similar.Ranges of analyses (plant means) of dry curd were 18.81 to 21.09% total solids, and 17.70 to 19.02% protein, and of creamed cheese, 19.85 to 22.48% total solids, 3.79 to 4.96% fat, 11.06 to 14.38% protein, and 53 to 67% protein in the solids.Density of dry curd varied from 1.03 to 1.05 g/ml and of creamed cheese, .83 to .98 g/ml.Although mean firmness of dry curd was relatively uniform among the plants, firmness of the creamed cheese differed almost three-Received May 2, 1977.1Milk Department, Safeway Stores Inc., Tempe, AZ.fold.For five of the six plants, curd size was relatively consistent with 20 to 40% retained by a 4-ram screen.Results of the survey indicate some aspects of cottage cheese manufacture where research and development might be most productive.Suggestions include studies of optimizing cooking conditions, particularly with respect to rate of cooking, heal time, and agitation during cooking; influence of curd washing procedures on composition and properties of the curd; draining characteristics of curd and improving equipment for curd draining; blending curd and cream dressing mixtures to minimize curd breakage and air incorporation; increasing uniformity of cream-absorbing properties of curd; and consumer acceptance studies related to properties of cottage cheese preferred by consumers.