Screening of dahi starters for compatibility with Lactobacillus gasseri strains to select a co-culture for probiotic dahi

Abstract

The present investigation was aimed at obtaining a best combination of probiotic Lactobacillus gasseri and a starter culture that can be used successfully for developing probiotic dahi by the co-culturing technique. Fourteen dahi starters (9 mesophilic and 5 thermophilic) were tested for compatibility with 4 potentially probiotic L. gasseri strains by the spot-on-lawn assay, on the basis of which two of the starters were rejected. The remaining dahi starters were co-cultured individually with the probiotic strains in sterile skim milk and evaluated for acidity, pH, probiotic count and Lactococcus/S. thermophilus count after incubation at 37ËšC for 12 h. S. thermophilus NCDC 75 which showed the best results was used to make dahi with all the four L. gasseri strains. Sensory evaluation of the product showed that all four probiotic cultures were suitable for making probiotic dahi.