A method of preparing a less sodium food product involves forming a reaction mixture of one or more of liquid sodium potassium hydrogen phosphate and liquid sodium dipotassium phosphate and combining a food ingredient with the emulsifying salt mixture. A reduced sodium process cheese product is formed of a sol to gel conversion fat stabilized via a hydrated protein matrix by a combination of potassium caseinate and sodium caseinate in which the caseinates are derived from an emulsifying salt mixture of liquid sodium potassium hydrogen phosphate and liquid sodium dipotassium phosphate, which, prior to reaction, accounts for at least about 2.5 and up to about 8.32 percent by weight of a total weight of the process cheese product. The emulsifying salt mixture formed of the reaction mixture remains in solution at ambient conditions for at least two weeks prior to incorporation with a food ingredient.
