Production And Evaluation Of Tiger-Nut Yogurt (Cyperus Esculentus L)

ABSTRACT

Yoghurt produced from the milk of tiger-nut was evaluated for their nutritional quality. The yoghurt was analyzed for it's microbial, proximate and physiochemical contents. The pH and total solids of the tiger-nut yoghurt were higher than that of the commercial yoghurt, although, the specific gravity, lactose and titratable acidity of the commercial yoghurt indicated higher values than that of the tiger-nut yoghurt. The moisture, ether extraction and carbohydrate content of the tigernut yoghurt indicated higher values of 89.76%, 2.54% and 0.963% respectively than the commercial yoghurt possess a high value of 14.27%, 2.17% and 6.56% respectively than the tiger-nut yoghurt. The study also indicated a total bacterial count of 9.8x 101 cfu/ml and a total fungal count of 1.20 x 102 cfu/ml under two weeks of stored ambient temperature. It was concluded that the tiger-nut yoghurt is potentially a good source of dietary protein and energy supplement for human consumption.