UTILIZATION OF TURMERIC AS A NATURAL PIGMENT IN RAS CHEESE

The research on curcumin has received a considerable attention due to its pronounced medical and industrial properties. Turmeric as a natural pigment with its active component curcumin was used in this study in the manufacture of Ras cheese as a replacer to annatto. Ras cheese was manufactured in triplicate with replacement of annatto by addition of 0%, 0.5, 1%, 1.5%, 2% and 2.5% turmeric. Cheeses were ripened at 12±2°C for 3months. Chemical analysis for moisture, fat, salt in moisture, pH, acidity, total nitrogen content (TN), water soluble nitrogen (WSN) and total volatile fatty acids (TVFA) were determined as well as bacteriological analysis to the treatments. Sensory evaluation of Ras cheese was performed when fresh and during ripening every month .The cheeses were graded for characteristics Flavor/aroma, body/texture and appearance*. The percentage of moisture decreased and the salt % increased in ail matured Ras cheese especially in the samples ripened for 90 days. The fat content %, the mean values for TN%, WSN/TN% and TVFA increased along with the increase in turmeric concentrations in all of the treatments. Sensory evaluation of the Ras cheese samples manufactured with 0.5 % and 1% turmeric exhibited more acceptable sensory evaluations than the cheese samples made with higher turmeric concentrations compared with the control cheese manufactured with annatto. To conclude, turmeric could be used as a natural pigment in the dairy products that may help focus on its beneficial medical and industrial properties.