Oat bran and sweeteners in petit-suisse cheese: technological and nutritional properties and consumer acceptance

Abstract

The aim of this study was to 1) take advantage of the gelling capacity of oats and prevent the syneresis of the petit-suisse cheese, 2) add oat bran to the cheese to increase the dietary fiber, and 3) investigate the acceptability of several different sweeteners (sucralose, Stevia, xylitol, and erythritol) in petit-suisse cheese supplemented with oats to increase sucrose-free product range. The petit-suisse cheese samples were manufactured with three different amounts of oat bran (3, 6, and 9 g/100 g) and two different concentrations of thickeners (1 and 2 g/100 g). Total dietary fiber, water-holding capacity, rheology, and sensory analyses were performed. The results indicated that adding oats to petit-suisse cheese increased its nutritional value due to the addition of fiber. The water-holding capacity increased with the addition of oats. The sweeteners xylitol and erythritol proved to be sensorially more similar to sucrose with respect to the overall impression. Our results indicate that the addition of oats and sweeteners to petit-suisse cheese is an option that brings nutritional benefits to the consumer and technological advantages to the company.