In recent times several researches have been focusing on non-dairy products as alternative to dairy products for the development of potential probiotic products. Different level of successes have been achieved in that regard. Fermentation of sterilized tigernut by 3 Log10CFU/g lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from ogi resulted in higher LAB count (5.17-7.34 Log10CFU/g) than using unsterilized tigernut (4.76-5.41 Log10CFU/g). However, there was slight difference in LAB count between unsterilized and sterilized tigernut fermented by larger LAB inoculum (6 Log10CFU/g). The LAB isolates identified as Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus brevis were used as mixed culture in three different combinations A, B and C to ferment tigernut-milk drink for 72hr at 45 oC. During the fermentation period (0-72hr), the pH of tigernut-milk drink Treatment A, B, C and D being the uninoculated reduced from6.40-4.36, 6.05-4.10, 6.0-4.04 and 6.34-5.40, respectively. The total culturable lactic acid bacterial count increased from 2.73-5.60 Log10CFU/ml, 2.72–5.45Log10CFU/ml,2.75-5.96 Log10CFU/ml in tigernut-milk drink Treatment A, B and C, respectively between 0-60 hr. Between 60-72 hr, reduction in culturable lactic acid bacteria occurred in tigernut-milk drink treatment A, B and C except treatment D. No culturable LAB were isolated between 0-24 hr in Treatment D.Between 36-72hr,culturable LAB count in Treatment D increased from 2.34-3.81Log10CFU/ml. Between 0-72 hr, TTA increased from 0.09-0.79 %, 0.09-0.73%,0.10-0.79 % and 0.09-0.16 % in tigernut drink Treatment A, B, C and the uninoculated, respectively. Within the same period, percentage lactic acid produced increased from 0.11-0.95 %, 0.12-0.87 %, 0.11-0.85% and 0.11-0.19 % in tigernut-milk drink Treatment A, B, C and D, respectively. The increase in culturable LAB count in all the tigernut-milk drink treatments makes it a suitable vehicle for delivering probiotic LAB.
