Product Development and Sensory Evaluation of Herbal Yogurt

Tan, Yen Yin (2018) Product Development and Sensory Evaluation of Herbal Yogurt. Final Year Project (Bachelor), Tunku Abdul Rahman University College.

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Abstract

The objectives of this study were as following: (1) to develop a new functional food product- herbal yogurt using traditional Chinese herbs, (2) to conduct sensory evaluation on herbal yogurt, and (3) to determine the physicochemical properties of herbal yogurt. Yogurt is made from milk cultured with live bacteria. It is a rich source of various nutrients, which provides health benefit in human. The herbs used in the herbal yogurt are licorice, monk fruit, red dates and dried longan, where each herb serves different purpose in the herbal yogurt. Yogurt is popular among the young people. However, they do not consume herbs frequently. Thus herbal yogurt was developed to provide vehicles for delivering the health benefits of herbs to the consumers particularly the youngesters. The herbal essence was prepared through simmering and concentrating the herbal mixture. Skim milk was pasteurized (80-82oC for 2 minutes) and cooled before the addition of herbal essence. The starter culture from plain yogurt was then added into the herbal milk. The mixture was homogenized and then incubated at 42oC for 9 hours to develop the herbal yogurt. Yogurt analysis was carried out for proximate composition (protein, crude fat, moisture content, ash content), total phenolic content (TPC), radical scavenging of DPPH, colour profile and physicochemical properties (pH, Brix, viscosity). Total viable cell count was carried out using MRS agar. Sensory evaluation was carried out using affective test (7-point hedonic scale, N= 63 panellists). The sensory results showed that the overall acceptability score for herbal yogurt was 5.7 out of 7. In conclusion, a brand new functional food- herbal yogurt with promising sensory quality and boosted with health benefits was developed. This product could target both the eastern and western markets as the concept of cross-culture fusion food (yogurt as western food, traditional Chinese herbs as eastern food) had been achieved.