摘要：Background and Objective: There is a risk to use the artificial antioxidant materials in food sector. So, the current study was designed to figure out the properties of Ultra-filtrated (UF) soft cheese supplemented with natural antioxidant material as basil essential oil (Ocimum basilicum var. Genovese). Materials and Methods: The extracted basil essential oil (B-EO) was investigated for its main constituents by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) as well as its antioxidant activity . The UF-soft cheese samples were traditionally prepared from buffalos milk retentate. Three treatments were achieved; the first was served as control while the second and the third samples were supplemented by B-EO at ratios of 0.005 (T1) and 0.010 (T2) μL/100 mL, respectively. The obtained data were statistically analyzed using SAS analysis method. Results: The results revealed that the main compound of B-EO was identified as linalool with 63.23%, while, the second was 1,8-cineol which reached to 11.69%. It was obvious, from obtained data, that B-EO had high antioxidant activity . Data also indicated that fortification of B-EO increased the antioxidant activity of the fortified cheese samples (T1 and T2) compared with control. Supplementation with B-EO had decreased the hardness, gumminess and chewiness of treated cheese samples than control one. On another side, judging degrees displayed that there were noticeable differences in flavor scores between treated and control samples. The treated samples with low level of B-EO (T1) were more favorable than those with high level (T2). Conclusion: It could be concluded that basil essential oil increased the antioxidant properties of UF-soft cheese samples and improved their rheological and sensorial characters, where the samples seemed to have refreshing and acceptable taste.
