Observations on Texture Measurement of Raw Cucumbers With the Fruit Pressure Tester*

Abstract

Raw fruit of a ‘firm’ (Explorer) and a ‘soft’ (Green F) cucumber cultivar were puncture tested with the Magness‐Taylor fruit pressure tester (FPT) manually, and also with the FPT or only FPT tip mounted in the Instron. Puncture‐values for flesh only were 70–75 % of those for intact fruit. Neither the cucumber size (1–2.5 in. diam) nor the test speed (5–50 cm min‐1) appreciably affected the puncture test values.

Texture of Sliced Cucumbers Measured by Subjective Human‐Bite and Objective Instrumental Tests

“…Mechanical properties on relatively homogeneous parenchyma have been investigated to describe texture of plant materials, and fracture tests with various breaking methods (tensile, compression, bending, wedging and cutting) have been commonly conducted (Vincent 1994). The puncture test of mesocarp (flesh) and/or endocarp (placenta in the seed cavity) has been adopted by many researchers to evaluate the texture of cucumbers (Breene et al 1974;Bourne 1982;Thompson et al 1982Thompson et al , 1992McFeeters and Lovdal 1987;Horie et al 2004;Sakurai et al 2005;Suojala-Ahlfors 2005;Sakata et al 2008). Another method to measure the texture of cucumbers was performed using a wedge-shaped probe to mimic human mastication (Dan et al 2003a;Kohyama et al 2003).…”

“…Previous studies reported changes in the mechanical properties of cucumber fruits during storage (Breene et al 1972;Horie et al 2004;Sakata et al 2008). The mechanical properties of cucumber fruits also vary with cultivars, days of harvest and storage period (Breene et al 1972(Breene et al , 1974Horie et al 2004;Sakurai et al 2005;Suojala-Ahlfors 2005;Pevicharova and Velkov 2007;Yoshioka et al 2009Yoshioka et al , 2010. Recent studies based on the puncture test of flesh revealed that a cultivar without warts (Freedom House No.…”

Method for Determination of Firmness in Cucumber Slices1

“…Thus, penetration of the whole fruit with an instrument such as the FPT may not provide textural data representative of the various tissue types. This problem exists also with instruments more sensitive than the FPT, such as the Instron UTM (Breene et al 1974), which have been used in penetration tests of whole cucumbers.…”

“…Determinations that have been made in relation to textural properties of the cucumber fruit interior include: carpel strength with the Instron UTM (Marshall et al 1975); Texture Profile Analysis of cucumber slices with the skin on and with the skin off (Breene et al 1972;1974;Jeon et al 1973); and anatomical dimensions and characteristics of interior cells and structures (Goffinet 1977;Miller and Morey 1977).…”

Comparison of Instrumental and Sensory Panel Methods for Measuring Kiwifruit Firmness

“…1 follow very closely the shape of type-C curves which Bourne (ibid.) observed for carrots, table beets and potatoes and Breene et al (1974) for cucumbers. Type-C curves are characterised by a smooth, steep rise to the yield point followed by a sharp fall back, with a plateau sometimes being formed and at other times a continuing fall at a slower rate than after the first yield.…”