Rheological and microstructural characteristics of model processed cheese analogues

The rheological and microstructural characteristics of a range of processed cheese analogues manufactured with different moisture contents and mixing speeds were investigated using frequency sweep, creep tests, compression to fracture and confocal microscopy. Cheeses with lower moisture content showed significantly higher values of G' and G″. Young's modulus, peak stress and work in compression as well as lower values for creep compliance. Moisture content played a more significant role than mixing speed in yielding textural differences in the products. The confocal micrographs showed that the fat droplet size decreased with decreasing moisture content, but little effect of mixing speed on the droplet size was detected. The effect of mixing speed was marginal or nonexistent, possibly due to the narrow range investigated.