Texture determination
A texture analyzer (TA. HD plus, Stable MicroSystems, God- alming, Surrey, UK) mounted with a P/2N puncture plunger was used to measure the firmness of the cauliflower samples (2–3 cm pieces). The plunger speed was 0.5 mm sec1 to measure the puncture force at a depth of 5 mm from the sample surface. The location of the stem was adjusted such that the plunger touched the middle point of the stem between the flower head and the end of the stem. Four pieces from each tray were taken for measurement and for every sample, four measurements were carried out. Thus an average value of 16 measurements was obtained that was expressed as relative firmness.