THE PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF CHEESE

Cheese is one of the most versatile foods around. It can be melted, sculpted, grated, chopped, fried,
baked and mixed into any number of recipes. An understanding of how cheese is made, and what
differences there are between various types of cheese can be instrumental in ensuring us the use of

this wonderful food in the best ways possible.

Its first important to know the main constituents of cheese. Cheese is made commonly
made from the milk of cows, goats, sheep and buffalo; though it can theoretically be produced
from any milk. Less common types of milks used in cheese making are yak, camel and horse.
The milk contains mainly water, fats, carbohydrates, proteins, phosphorus and calcium, and
knowing how all these come together can help us understand how cheese is made.
The primary item that merits discussion for our purposes is protein. The most common
protein in cheese is casein, which can make up a vast majority of the protein in cheese depending
on the type of milk used. Casein molecules form into small bubbles called micelles, and these
bubbles interact with each other to form a network that
gives the cheese strength. In the center of these
micelles we find fat. The more fat, the larger the
micelles become, and the farther apart the casein gets.
So as a general rule, cheeses that are higher in fat have
casein molecules that are farther apart from each other,
and thus the network is weaker and yields a softer
cheese.
The casein network can also be influenced by pH
Figure 1. Schematic drawing
or heat. With a drop in pH (becoming more acidic), the
of a casein micelle.
casein network becomes more tightly bound together. If
the pH drops too low, however, the network can break apart and form large clumps. These large
clumps dont interact with each other very well, and so the cheese may become brittle and not
stretch as well. Heating cheese obviously causes it to melt and flow, because heat releases the fat
from inside the micelles. This can easily be seen by melting cheese and observing that fat comes
to the surface. When fat leaves the micelles, they constrict and flow more freely which we see as
stretching, delicious and melty cheese. The amount of fat as well as the pH of the cheese can
influence how it stretches and melts.
Although there are many other constituents of cheese, and even other atoms like calcium
and phosphate that participate in creating the texture of cheese, well restrict our discussion to
the protein casein.
BACTERIAL CULTURES INVOLVED
Cultures for cheese making are called lactic acid bacteria (LAB) because their primary source of
energy is the lactose in milk and their primary metabolic product is lactic acid. There is a wide
variety of bacterial cultures available that provide distinct flavor and textural characteristics to
cheeses.

Starter cultures are used early in the cheese making process to assist with coagulation by
lowering the pH prior to rennet addition. The metabolism of the starter cultures contribute
desirable flavor compounds, and help prevent the growth of spoilage organisms and pathogens.
Typical starter bacteria include Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis or cremoris, Streptococcus
salivarius subsp. thermophilus, Lactobacillus delbruckii subsp. bulgaricus, and Lactobacillus
helveticus.
Adjunct cultures are used to provide or enhance the characteristic flavors and textures of cheese.
Common adjunct cultures added during manufacture include Lactobacillus casei and
Lactobacillus plantarum for flavor in Cheddar cheese, or the use of Propionibacterium
freudenreichii for eye formation in Swiss. Adjunct cultures can also be used as a smear for
washing the outside of the formed cheese, such as the use of Brevibacterium linens of gruyere,
brick and limburger cheeses.
Yeasts and molds are used in some cheeses to provide the characteristic colors and flavors of
some cheese varieties. Torula yeast is used in the smear for the ripening of brick and limberger
cheese. Examples of molds include Penicillium camemberti in camembert and brie, and
Penicillium roqueforti in blue cheeses.