The Effect of Salt Concentration on Some Characteristics in Herby Cheese 1 2 2 3

Abstract: Herby cheese is a salted traditional cheese manufactured from sheep’s and cow’s milk in the Eastern and South-eastern of Turkey. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of different salt concentrations (4, 5 and 6%) on the ripening characteristics of Herby cheese. Pasteurized whole cow's milk (3.7 % fat) was used for Herby cheese manufacture. The cheese samples were ripened under soil at 7±1 C o for 90 days. The samples were characterized in terms of microbiological, chemical and sensory properties. The ripening time had a significant (P<0.05) effect on all parameters except for protein, fat, total aerobic bacteria (TAB), appearance and colour, body and texture, and flavour. In addition, salt concentration had a significant influence on dry matter, salt, titratable acidity, micrococci and staphylococci, proteolytic bacteria, yeasts and moulds, appearance and colour, and saltiness. As a result, we concluded that increasing the salt concentration in cheese samples contributed to reducing the number of microorganisms and increased the acceptability in terms of appearance and colour, and body and texture from sensory properties