Cauliflower sulfides

The roundish flower head, the curd, of the cauliflower plant (Brasska oleracea var. botrytis) is the edible portion of this vegetable. It can be eaten raw in salads or as a pickled condiment in vinegar. More often it is boiled and eaten with the main meal or is converted into sauces and soups. Over 80 volatile compounds have been identified in raw and cooked cauliflower. Among the compounds potentially active in cooked cauliflower, certain sulfides such as methanethiol, dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl trisulflde have often been incriminated in objectionable sulfurous aromas and overcooked off-flavours [169, 177, 178, 181-183]. Additional aldehydes have been found to be the most abundant cauliflower volatiles, with nonanal as a major component [175,177]. A recent study showed that volatiles such as 2-propenyl isothiocyanate, dimethyl trisulflde, di-... 

Sun, W., Zhong, J., Qin, R and Jiao, K. (2008) Electrochemical biosensor for the detection of cauliflower mosaic virus 35 S gene sequences using lead sulfide nanoparticles as oligonucleotide labels. A flZ. Biochem., 377, 115-119. 

Sulfur compounds present in wine can have a detrimental effect on aroma character, producing odors described as garlic, onion and cauliflower, so-called Boeckser aroma. This sulfurous character is correlated with with 2-methyl-3-hydroxythiophene, 2-methyl-3-furanthiol and ethanethiol, and their concentrations in wine are influenced by winery procedures and the use of certain winemaking yeasts (105). Off-flavors in European wines were associated with the nonvolatile bis(2-hydroxyethyl) disulfide, a precursor to the poultry-like character of 2-mercaptoethanol and hydrogen sulfide (106). 

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