The objective of this study was to describe the dependence of textural properties (hardness, cohesiveness, and relative adhesiveness) of processed cheese spreads on the proportion of disodium phosphate (DSP), tetrasodium diphosphate (TSPP), and sodium salts of polyphosphate in ternary mixtures of emulsifying salts. Sodium salts of polyphosphate with different mean lengths (n ≈ 5, 9, 13, 20, and 28) were used. Pentasodium triphosphate (PSTP) was used instead of TSPP in the second part of the study. Products with and without pH adjustment were tested (the target pH value was 5.60-5.80). Textural properties of the processed cheese were observed after 2, 9, and 30 d of storage at 6°C. Hardness of the processed cheese with a low content of polyphosphate increased at a specific DSP:TSPP ratio (~1:1 to 3:4). This trend was the same for all the polyphosphates used; only the absolute values of texture parameters were different. The same trends were observed in the ternary mixtures with PSTP, showing lower final values of hardness compared with samples containing TSPP. Hardness and cohesiveness decreased and relative adhesiveness increased in the samples with increased pH values and vice versa; the main trend remained unchanged.

The aim of this work was to examine the effect of a different dry matter (DM) contents (35 and 45% wt/wt) and fat in DM contents (40 and 50% wt/wt) on the textural and viscoelastic properties and microstructure of model processed cheeses made from real ingredients regularly used in the dairy industry. A constant DM content and constant fat in DM content were kept throughout the whole study. Apart from the basic chemical parameters, textural and viscoelastic properties of the model samples were measured and scanning electron microscopy was carried out. With increasing DM content, the rigidity of the products increased and the size of the fat globules in the model samples of the processed cheeses decreased. With increasing fat in DM content, the rigidity of the processed cheeses decreased and the size of the fat globules increased.