This research presented a novel way to introduce a functional probiotic into a soy bar product with the intention of allowing for in vivo enzymatic hydrolysis of SOS by the microencapsulated live cells. A step-by-step optimization of probiotic strain selection, probiotic incubation conditions, microencapsulation and freezing methods and soy bar manufacture were conducted. The microencapsulation wall materials composing of k-carrageenan and inulin at a proportion of 1.9:0.1 (w:w) and freezing encapsulated cells at _20 _C prior to freeze-drying, were found to be the best conditions for manufacturing and maintaining high viable numbers of the dried probiotic microcapsules. SEM studies further proved that
the optimized freeze-drying process caused no severe changes to the shape and size of the LA-2 probiotic microcapsules. The viability of the freeze-dried microencapsulated LA-2 was well retained within an 8-week period by vacuum packaging and dark storage at 4 _C, and when incorporated into a soy bar product, a high level of cell viability was maintained throughout a 14-week storage at 4 _C. The results of this study demonstrated the feasibility of an optimized microencapsulation and freeze-drying method to introduce probiotics that show promising uses in the soy food industry for addressing the problems associated with SOS.