Pasta filata-simulative cheese product and method of making

Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Fermentation processes – Of milk or milk product

Reissue Patent

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Details

C426S036000, C426S039000, C426S040000, C426S042000, C426S043000

Reissue Patent

active

RE037264

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a cheese, specifically a new form of pizza cheese similar to Mozzarella cheese.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Mozzarella cheese is the fastest growing cheese market in the U.S. today, primarily due to the increased consumption of both fresh and frozen pizza. Mozzarella's clean mild flavor, favorable shredding, and appealing melt and stretch characteristics make it well suited for use on pizza. Mozzarella cheese is a member of the pasta filata group of cheeses. Like other pasta filata cheeses, the curd is mechanically heated, stretched and molded under hot water. This heat treatment inactivates residual milk coagulant and reduces starter populations, decreasing the potential for casein hydrolysis in the cheese during refrigerated storage. Mozzarella's unique characteristics of both good melt and stretch are related to its pH and the heat treatment it receives as the curd goes through the mixer. This process helps give Mozzarella its characteristic stretch and “stringiness.” The pasta filata process requires a specialized and expensive piece of equipment called a mixer molder. Mozzarella is also traditionally made with a brine step, creating a brine disposal problem. It is believed that the good stretch, good meltability, and good shredability of Mozzarella is due to its composition, the final pH and limited proteolysis.
Other cheeses can be used on pizzas, however they need to function like Mozzarella. For example, Cheddar cheese may have wonderful flavor, but its functional characteristics when melted are not well suited. A very young Cheddar stretches well after heating, but only softens and does not flow. After three months of aging, it flows nicely, but no longer stretches.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a method of manufacturing pasta filata-simulative cheeses and the resultant cheeses produced by the method. The method does not require a mixing or molding step which is required of traditional Mozzarella and other pasta filata cheeses. The method of the present invention comprises first pre-acidifying milk. The pre-acidified milk is then ripened with a mesophilic starter culture to yield cheese milk. The cheese milk is then coagulated by adding a coagulant to yield a coagulum. The coagulum is then cut and the curds separated from the whey. The curds are then washed in water. At this point, the method calls for proceeding directly to salt, hoop, and press the curds in the absence of any milling, mixing, or molding of the curds. The cheese produced by the process is remarkable similar to traditional pasta filata cheeses in both functional and organoleptic qualities.
One object of this invention is to provide a pizza cheese that has comparable flavor and functional characteristics to Mozzarella, but which does not require a mixer molder or a brining step during its manufacture.
Another aspect of the present invention is a manufacturing process for a high moisture, 25% to 75% reduced-fat pizza cheese which is not run through a mixer molder. The cheese has functional qualities (melt and stretch) similar to conventional Mozzarella cheese.
A direct comparison between a 25% reduced-fat pizza cheese according to the present invention and a conventional low moisture, part-skim (LMPS) Mozzarella, as well as a comparison between a 50% reduced-fat pizza cheese according to the present invention and a conventional 75% reduced-fat Mozzarella revealed no differences in the overall performance (melt, stretch and flavor preference) between the cheeses.
Functional Advantages
The resulting pizza cheese is similar in moisture, fat, salt, total protein, and pH to conventional Mozzarella made in the traditional fashion. The pizza cheese maintains a 10-inch “stretch” through three months and has melt characteristics similar to Mozzarella. The following differences were also noted between the pizza cheese of the present invention and conventional Mozzarella:
1) The pizza cheese does not turn brown when heated. Due to the starter culture used and an altered manufacturing protocol, the pizza (cheese has no residual sugar and will not brown during baking.
2) The pizza cheese is whiter than Mozzarella. Smaller and more numerous fat globules reflect more light, giving the pizza cheese an extremely white appearance. Due to the whiter appearance, the taste panel commented that it looked like there was more cheese on the pizza.
3) The pizza cheese is less chewy when young than conventional Mozzarella.
4) The pizza cheese exhibits 50% less ‘oiling off’ when heated. During the mixing process for conventional LMPS Mozzarella, heat and mixing permit the fat to coalesce and water to pool around the protein strands. In the subject pizza cheese manufacturing process, a mixer and high temperatures are not used. Consequently, the fat globules do not coalesce and they remain smaller within the cheese matrix. Thus, the fat in the pizza cheese is less likely to pool during pizza baking.
5) The pizza cheese is more homogeneous than Mozzarella.
6) The pizza cheese exhibits less flow than Mozzarella.
7) The pizza cheese exhibits fewer blisters when heated than Mozzarella. The pizza cheese contains smaller pockets of water, which produce fewer blisters than LMPS Mozzarella. When heated, the smaller pockets of water do not produce enough steam to make a blister, or bubble on the cheese surface.
8) The pizza cheese yields shorter shreds and more Fines when shredded.
Commercial Advantages
The cheese manufacturing process of the present invention benefits cheesemakers in two ways: First, it allows manufacturers of stirred curd cheese varieties (i.e., Cheddar, Colby, Brick, Monterey Jack, Muenster) to expand into the growing pizza cheese market with a minimal purchase of equipment. This gives cheesemakers the capability of manufacturing a new variety of cheese with the same functional characteristics as LMPS Mozzarella. And because the manufacturing process does not require the mixer molder and brine systems needed to manufacture traditional Mozzarella, producing the present pizza cheese is economically advantageous from a capital expenditure view point.
Second, as noted, above, the fat retention increases from about 86 to 92%, giving cheesemakers higher cheese yields. It is estimated that this higher yield translates to 109 lbs. of additional cheese per 50,000 lbs. of milk as compared to the conventional manufacturing of Mozzarella. This, of course, is economically advantageous from a profit margin view point.
Further advantages of the invention will appear from a complete reading of the Detailed Description, below.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is specifically directed to a process of cheese making in which the moisture level in the cheese is controlled by pre-acidifying the milk, using a short manufacturing time, and washing the curd. Additionally, the typical milk coagulant level is decreased by at least 50% and a mesophilic rather than a thermophilic starter culture is used.
The resulting cheese is similar in composition to low moisture, part-skin Mozzarella (47% moisture, 22.3% fat, pH at 1 month 5.2) and 50% reduced-fat Mozzarella cheese (54.5% moisture, 8.5% fat, pH at 1 month 5.15).
Raw Milk
The process can start with milk having a relatively wide range of fat content, from 0.07% (virtually fat-free) to 3.6%. The preferred milk for the cheese of the present invention is termed “low moisture part skim” (LMPS:) milk, which has a milkfat content of approximately 2.3%. An alternative milk is termed “lowerfat” (LF), which has a milkfat content of approximately 0.70%. Additionally, cheese from whole milk can be made. Whole milk generally has a milkfat content of 3.5%. Raw milk has a pH of about 6.64.
Milk can be “standardized” to a preferred milkfat content. For example, if the starting milkfat level exceeding the desired level, the milk can be standardized to decrease the level. Standardization is a process well-known to the art. In essence, lowering the milkfat levels increases the milk prote

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