Learning objectives
At the end of the course the student should be able to: - know from a practical point of view the phases that characterize cheese processing; - evaluate the chemical-physical and technological elements that contribute to obtaining the desired products in terms of cheese yield and qualitative properties; - with specific reference to some types of cheese: have an overview of the main microbiological and chemical-physical parameters for process and product control.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of microbiology, chemistry, hygiene and dairy technology is recommended.
Course unit content
The course provides practical elements relating to cheese making, with reference to the phases that distinguish the main national cheese technologies, in particular grana-type cheeses, soft cheeses (crescenza) and stretched curd cheeses (mozzarella).
Full programme
Transformation of milk into cheese: during the three weeks of exercises, the following products will be covered:
- Grana cheese, as an example of hard and cooked cheeses.
- Crescenza, as an example of an industrial soft cheese.
- Mozzarella by fermentation, as an example of a soft stretched-curd cheese.
Students will follow all the transformation phases, in which they will be trained on the main controls both raw material and during the phases that characterize the transformation and maturation of the products. The problems related to the cheese yield and the analyses that allow to evaluate and set the constancy and compositional quality of processes and products will be addressed.
Bibliography
During the course, practical applications will alternate with moments of lectures. In this last regard, supplementary monographic material and slides will be provided from time to time. The recommended texts are the same as those indicated by the teacher of the course of Milk Processing Technologies II - Cheeses
Teaching methods
Practical trainings will show some of the main national dairy technologies (grana, crescenza, mozzarella). Short frontal modules, alternated with cheese production, will be proposed in a classroom, located within the dairy environment. Some key operations and analytical determinations will be carried out by the students in the second part of the course.
Assessment methods and criteria
The exams will be taken orally, in close synergy with the course of Dairy Technologies II – Cheese. At the end of the course, some case study, applied to the main dairy processing technologies, will be discussed and commented. The exams will allow to verify not only the learning status of the knowledge acquired but also the critical capacity to process the practical notions learned during the course.
Other information
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