Functional Properties and Nutritional Quality of Processed Cheese Spreads Enriched with Black Rice Powder

Black rice has been reported to contain many bioactive compounds, protein, crude fiber, total carbohydrates and minerals with attractive purple color making it valuable component in dairy industries. Partial replacement of dairy ingredients by 2-6% black rice powder (BRP) to make functional processed cheese spreads (PCS) was investigated. Chemical composition, microbiological, rheological characteristics, total phenolic compounds (TPC), antioxidant activity (AA) and sensory evaluation of PCS were determined. Results showed that no significant difference was observed in dry matter and fat content between PCS and control sample however, the protein content was significantly decreased by addition of BRP. Adding different ratios of BRP in PCS increased the TPC and AA than control sample as fresh and throughout the cold storage period. Furthermore, fortification with BRP significantly affected the rheological characteristics of PCS. Inclusion of black rice powder at different concentrations in the PCSs mix had no noticeable effect on the microbiological quality. Sensory evaluation results revealed that using 2% BRP in PCS processing had higher acceptability compared with control sample. Thus, BRP could be incorporated in PCS to develop a product with acceptable functional, nutritional and sensory properties.