Assessment of physicochemical, microbiological and sensory attributes of probiotic papaya curd prepared by inoculating Lactobacillus brevis UN and Lactobacillus spicheri G2

In the present investigation, two strains Lactobacillus brevis UN and Lactobacillus spicheri G2 were used to prepare flavored probiotic curd. Flavor was added in the curd by adding fresh papaya cubes. Four different sets of papaya curd were prepared by taking different combinations of probiotic inoculums during fermentation process. Control was also prepared by using native inoculum of curd. Fermentation of each set was carried out at 30 ^°C for 4h, product formed was kept at a refrigerated temperature upto 12 days. Sensorial, microbiological and physiochemical analysis of each prepared set of probiotic curd was performed during storage interval. Results obtained after sensorial evaluation revealed that different combinations of L. brevis UN and L. spicheri G2 exerted a significant influence on the sensory quality of the flavored curd. Microbiological evaluation of each set of product proved that there was no loss in total number of viable cells in the product during storage. Statistical analysis of physio-chemical attributes revealed that changes taking place during storage intervals in various sets of Probiotic curd were non-significant.