Dutch-type cheese

Dutch-type cheese contains 1.4% lactose at pressing but this decreases to <0.1% after pressing and to undetectable levels after brining (Raads-veld, 1957). 

The predominant NSLAB in Cheddar and Dutch-type cheeses are meso-philic Lactobacillus, which possess a cell wall-associated and intracellular proteinases. A range of intracellular peptidases, including dipeptidases, aminopeptidases, and endopeptidases, have been identified in Lactobacillus (see reviews by Khalid and Marth 1990a Peterson and Marshall, 1990). Interestingly, carboxypeptidase activity, which has not been found in lacto-cocci, has been reported in Lactobacillus casei (El Soda et al., 1978). 

Pachlova, V., Bunka, R, Flasarova, R., Valkova, R, Bunkova, L. (2012). The effect of elevated temperatme on ripening of Dutch type cheese. Food Chemistry, 132, 1846-1854. http //dx.doi.Org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.12.017. 

Members of three genera are used as cheese starters. For cheeses that are cooked to a temperature below about 39°C, species of Lactococcus, usually Lc. lactis ssp. cremoris, are used, i.e. for Cheddar, Dutch, Blue, surface mould and surface-smear families. For high-cooked varieties, a thermophilic Lactobacillus culture is used, either alone (e.g. Parmesan) or with Streptococcus salivarius ssp. thermophilus (e.g. most Swiss varieties and Mozzarella). Leuconostoc spp. are included in the starter for some cheese varieties, e.g. Dutch types the function is to produce diacetyl and C02 from citrate rather than acid production. 

Coagulant. Most of the coagulant is lost in the whey but some is retained in the curd. Approximately 6% of added chymosin is normally retained in Cheddar and similar varieties, including Dutch types the amount of rennet retained increases as the pH at whey drainage is reduced. As much as 20% of added chymosin is retained in high-moisture, low-pH cheese, e.g. Camembert. Only about 3% of microbial rennet substitutes is retained in the curd and the level retained is independent of pH. 

Proteolysis has not yet been fully characterized in any cheese variety but considerable progress has been made for Cheddar and, as far as is known, generally similar results apply to other low-cook, internal bacterially ripened cheeses (e.g. Dutch types). Proteolysis in Cheddar will be summarized as an example of these types of cheese. 

As mentioned in Section IV El, the extent of proteolysis varies from very limited, e.g.. Mozzarella, to very extensive, e.g., blue-mould varieties. The use of PAGE showed that the proteolytic pattern, as well as its extent, exhibit marked intervarietal differences (Ledford et al., 1966 Marcos et al., 1979). The PAGE patterns of both the water-insoluble and water-soluble fractions are, in fact, quite characteristic of the variety, as shown in Figs. 11 and 12 for a number of Cheddar, Dutch, and Swiss-type cheeses. RP-HPLC of the water-soluble fraction or subfractions thereof also shows varietal characteristics (Fig. 13). Both the PAGE and HPLC patterns vary and become more complex as the cheese matures and are in fact very useful indices of cheese maturity and to a lesser extent of its quality (O Shea, 1993). Therefore, they have potential in the objective assessment of cheese quality. 

Of the three primary events in cheese ripening, i.e., glycolysis, lipolysis, and proteolysis, proteolysis is usually the rate-limiting one. Glycolysis is normally very rapid and is complete in most varieties within 24 hr therefore, acceleration of glycolysis is not of interest. The modification and catabolism of lactate is either of little or no consequence (e.g., Cheddar or Dutch varieties) or is quite rapid—2-3 weeks (e.g., Swiss types, Camembert)—and consequently its acceleration is not important. Lipolysis is limited in most cheese varieties, exceptions being some Italian varieties, e.g., Romano and... 

FIGURE 20.8 Relationship between the actual age and the predicted age of two types of Dutch cheese samples (range 25 to 412 days). 

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