Abstract
The present study was conducted to develop and characterize plant-based fermented curd and kefir from peanut milk as potential dairy alternatives for lactose-intolerant individuals and consumers following plant-based diets. Peanut milk was fermented with Lactobacillus acidophilus to produce curd and with a commercial mixed kefir starter culture, mainly containing Lactobacillus kefiri, to produce kefir. The developed peanut curd had 82.7% moisture, 7.9% fat, 8.93% protein, and 119.25 mg/100 mL carbohydrate. It had a total flavonoid content (TFC) of 285.47 ± 5.87 mg QE/100 mL, an anthocyanin content of 4.2 mg cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G) eq/L, and moderate in vitro antioxidant activity, with 54% 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging activity. Fermentation increased the titratable acidity to 3.543 ± 0.586 mEq/g, while the final pH was 4.19, indicating successful lactic acid fermentation. Microbiological analysis showed a viable bacterial count of 2.13 × 10⁵ colonyforming units per milliliter (CFU/mL) at the countable dilution. Peanut milk kefir had 88.7% moisture, 3.9% fat, 6.76% protein, and 126.75 mg/100 mL carbohydrate, with a TFC of 225.13 ± 3.55 mg QE/100 mL, an anthocyanin content of 4.4 mg C3G eq/L, and 52% DPPH radical-scavenging activity. The jaggery-supplemented peanut kefir showed a high viable microbial count of 1.9 × 10⁹ CFU/mL, indicating successful fermentation and good microbial viability. The jaggery-supplemented kefir also showed good starter-culture survival during fermentation, as indicated by the high viable microbial count. Sensory evaluation revealed that the jaggery-supplemented formulations had better flavor, taste, and overall acceptability. The results indicate that peanut milk is a suitable substrate for the production of fermented plant-based products with desirable nutritional, phytochemical, microbiological, and sensory characteristics. Further research on shelf-life stability, textural improvement, probiotic efficacy, and the bioavailability of bioactive compounds is needed before wider health, or commercial applications can be considered.
doi: 10.17756/jfcn.2026-s1-004
Citation: Teli NC, Ronya N, Yadav AK, Kulo JH. 2026. Bioprocess Optimization and Functional Characterization of Peanut Milk-based Vegan Fermented Products as Sustainable Dairy Alternatives. J Food Chem Nanotechnol 12(S1): S27-S38.
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