Evolution of Qualitative and Quantitative Lipid Profiles of High-Pressure-Processed Serra da Estrela Cheese throughout Storage

High-pressure processing (HPP) can be used as a nonthermal pasteurization technique to overcome microbial safety issues of the raw ewes' milk Serra da Estrela cheese without negatively influencing its quality, in particular, the lipid composition partly responsible for Serra da Estrela cheese's sensorial and textural attributes. The aim of this work was to assess HPP's effect (600 MPa/6 min and 450 MPa/6 and 9 min) on the qualitative and quantitative lipid profiles of Serra da Estrela cheese during 15 months of refrigerated storage. Total triglycerides content (65-66 g TG/100 g) was similarly determined for HPP-treated (450 MPa/6 min) and control cheeses. Similar total contents of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids were reported for all cheeses during storage. A high total conjugated linoleic acid content (1.29-1.65 g FA/100 g fat) was quantified in all cheeses during storage; all cheeses revealed similar atherogenic and thrombogenic indices (similar to 2.3 and similar to 2.6, respectively). HPP can be used to process Serra da Estrela cheese at conditions that assure microbial safety without influencing cheese lipid profiles.

Automated summary

High-pressure processing (HPP) can be used to pasteurize raw ewes' milk Serra da Estrela cheese without affecting its lipid composition, ensuring both microbial safety and quality during storage. The total triglycerides content and the fatty acid profiles remained similar between HPP-treated and control cheeses over the course of 15 months of refrigerated storage. HPP-treated Serra da Estrela cheese exhibited a high content of conjugated linoleic acid, comparable to the control cheese, with similar atherogenic and thrombogenic indices.