DEVELOPMENT AND CHARACTERIZATION OF PHYSICO-CHEMICAL AND FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES OF GREEN TEA YOGHURT

Abstract

The present study aimed at developing a low-fat, low-sugar green tea yoghurt. The final acidities of the green tea and plain yoghurts were similar, but the lactic acid count in green tea yoghurt (5.8*10⁷ cfu/g) was twice of that in the plain yoghurt (2.7*10⁷ cfu/g). This suggested that the tea extract buffered pH lowering during fermentation. Sensorially, the green tea yoghurt was at par acceptable with the plain yoghurt. The total phenolic content of green tea yoghurt was significantly higher (397.9 µg GAE/ mL) than that of the plain yoghurt (81.0 µg GAE/ mL). These polyphenols have proven health benefits like gut health, weight loss, and bone health.