Fat mimetics in low-fat cheddar cheese

Cheeses with 60% reduced fat content were prepared with three commercial fat mimetics. Low-fat cheeses without added fat mimetics and full-fat cheeses were prepared as controls. Cheeses were aged 3 months prior to sensory and instrumental evaluation. A low-fat cheese containing one of the fat mimetics received the highest texture scores from daily judges and consumer panelists (p less than or equal to 0.05). The low-fat control and another cheese with a fat mimetic received higher flavor scores from the trained dairy judges and consumer panelists than the other cheeses containing fat mimetics (P less than or equal to 0.05). Low-fat cheeses containing fat mimetics were less rubbery than the low-fat control cheese (P less than or equal to 0.05).