Capsule formation by nonropy starter cultures affects the viscoelastic properties of yogurt during structure formation.

The aim of this work was to study the structure formation of yogurt made with cultures containing ropy Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus (R), capsule-forming nonropy Streptococcus thermophilus (CNR), and noncapsule-forming nonropy cultures (NCNR). Similar gelation profiles were shown for milk fermented by ropy and nonropy lactic cultures. The gelation point occurred at lower pH values in milk fermented with R or NCNR compared to that of milk fermented with CNR culture. Differences between capsule forming ropy and nonropy cultures were observed in the aggregation behavior of the caseins. Gels made with R culture had the highest maximum in loss tangent (tan delta). However, this maximum occurred at the highest pH value when CNR culture was used. The earlier gelation of milk fermented by the encapsulated nonropy strain of Strep. thermophilus resulted in increased structure rearrangement as the pH dropped, interfering with the formation of a more compact structure.