Abdulaal Farhan - College of Agriculture, Wasit University, Wasit, Iraq
Hyder N. Al-Zobaidy - College of Agriculture, Wasit University, Wasit, Iraq
Muhsin F. Al-Quraishi - College of Agriculture, Wasit University, Wasit, Iraq

Consumption of dairy products (such as yogurt and cheese) contain bioactive compounds of natural sources could be a good way to improve the functionality of these products and promoting human health. Thick yogurt is widely consumed in Iraq. In the present work, thick yogurt (TY) was manufactured and fortified with an aqueous extract prepared from mint leafs. The water used as an extracting solvent to prepare different aqueous extracts from mint leafs. The total phenolic content of the prepared extracts was determined. The aqueous extract prepared at 100 °C for 15 min (AE4) showed the highest phenolic content. Thus, this extract used for the TY manufacturing. TY samples were manufactured with different concentrations (1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, v/v) of AE4 and stored for 14 days at 5 °C. The pH value, total phenolic content and sensory attributes of the manufactured TY samples were determined. All TY samples fortified with AE4 had decreased pH values with increasing storage period. Total phenolic content (TPC) of TY samples increased with increasing the concentration of the added AE4. Evaluation of sensory attributes showed that all TY samples contained different concentrations of AE4 were acceptable by panelist.

Thick yogurt, mint leafs, bioactive compounds, phenolic content