Fermentation Kinetics and Sensory Attributes of Milk Fermented by Probiotic Bacteria

Two indigenous human originated potentially probiotic cultures Lb. helveticus MTCC 5463 (LH) and Lb. rhamnosus 231 (LR231) were used to ferment milk and products were examined for their fermentation characteristics and sensory attributes. Lb. rhamnosus GG (LGG) and commercial dairy starter YC-381 (YC) were used as control. Decline in pH and corresponding increase titratable acidity of milk fermented by probiotic strains were similar to YC. Amongst the probiotic strains, LH was found to produce highest acid which was comparable to dairy starters. Viability of all probiotic organism did not differ significantly and remained above 8 log cfu/g in freshly fermented product. LH produced significantly higher lactic acid whereas the concentrations of the acetic acid did not vary among the probiotic strains and dairy. Highest viscosity of fermented product obtained with LGG, however, whey separation was not found to be affected. Milk fermented by probiotic organism are found to be comparable, in their sensorial attributes, to commercial dairy starters. Hence, the indigenous probiotic strains could be utilize as dairy starter to produce fermented milk.