Effects of Lactarius hatsudake Fortification on Physicochemical, Microbiological and Antioxidant Properties of Stirred-Type Yogurt during Cold Storage

Food fortification is a cost-effective and efficient way to meet the needs of consumers looking for products with certain health benefits. Lactarius hatsudake (LH) is a wild and edible mushroom with nutritional and medicinal benefits, making it a promising natural, high-quality food option with multiple functions. During this research, yogurts that were stirred and enhanced with LH at concentrations of 0%, 0.5%, 1.5%, and 3.0% were prepared. The impact of LH on the color, number of viable lactic acid bacteria (LAB) cells, pH, titratable acidity (TA), syneresis, viscosity, texture, and antioxidant activity of the yogurt samples was assessed over a storage period of 28 d. The findings indicated that LH had a notable impact on the characteristics of yogurt samples over time, including decreased CIE L*, increased CIE a* and CIE b* color values, decreased pH values, viscosity and cohesiveness, while increased viable LAB cells, the contents of TA, syneresis and consistency, and antioxidant activity. The yogurt fortified with 0.5% LH showed comparable textural parameter values and sensory scores to plain yogurt, indicating it could be the ideal amount for industrial production. These findings showed that LH improved the physicochemical, microbiological, and antioxidant properties of yogurt, suggesting the possibility of developing sustainable LH products in functional dairy products.