Paneer is a very common indigenous dairy product in mainly India and all over the world, is similar to an un- ripened variety of soft cheese which is used in the preparation of a variety of culinary dishes and snacks. It is obtained by heat and acid coagulation of milk, entrapping almost all the fat, casein complexed with denatured whey proteins and a portion of salts and lactose.
Paneer is marble white in appearance, having firm, cohesive and spongy body with a close-knit texture and a sweetish-acidic-nutty flavor. Preparation of paneer using different types of milk and varied techniques results in wide variation in physico-chemical, microbiological and sensory quality of the product. Paneer blocks of required size are packaged in laminated plastic pouches, preferably vacuum packaged, heat sealed and stored under refrigeration. Paneer keeps well for about a day at ambient temperature and for about a week under refrigeration (7 °C). The spoilage of paneer is mainly due to bacterial action.
As per Food Safety and Standards Regulations (FSSR), 2011 Paneer is the heat assisted coagulated product resulted from the coagulation of cow or buffalo milk or a combination thereof with the help of lactic acid or citric acid. The paneer must have the moisture content less than 70 %. The fat per cent of paneer shall be greater than 50.0 of the dry matter.
Without any late let's move into the process of panner making before that first let's understand the Flowchart of Panner processing:
1. Receiving milk:
Milk is received in a clean and sterilized Stainless Steel (SS304) multi-
purpose vat. Milk is standardized for Fat and SNF (fat: SNF 1:1.65) in a. Then
milk is heated to 85-900C and hold it for 5 minutes, maintaining the same
temperature. This process is also referred to as batch pasteurization. Purpose
of batch pasteurization is to reduce the microbial load. Temperature of the
pasteurized milk is then brought down to 700C.
2. Prepare 1% citric acid solution with respect to the milk,
which is used as a coagulant. The temperature of coagulant is maintained at
700C, which is same as the temperature of milk at the time of addition of
coagulants.
3. The coagulant is added in optimum quantity and stir them
slowly, so that a clear whey separation shall be achieved. The green colour of
the whey indicates proper coagulation. Stirring should not be intense otherwise
this will lead to the break up the curd mass.
4. Once the pH of whey reached in the range of 5.7 to 6.0,
allow the curd mass to be settle for about 5 - 10 minutes. Allow the whey to be
drained out through a muslin cloth and the coagulated curd remains in the
vat/cloth. It is advised that the whey temperature should not fall below 630C
during the whole process.
5. The curd mass shall be filled in the SS hoops lined with
muslin cloth and pressed for 15- 20 min. Pressing can be achieved through a
manual press or pneumatic press.
6. Immersed the pressed paneer blocks in chilled water (4- 6
0C) or 5% brine solution (4- 6%) for 2 - 3 hours to achieve firmness. Further
the paneer blocks were cuts and dried to remove extra free water.
7. At last, the paneer slices were packed in a vacuum-package made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and stored at 5 - 8 0C for further sales/distribution.
