Relevant measurements of green pea texture

Pea (Pisum sativum L. var. medullae Alef.) texture is one cf the most impor tant quality attributes for Danish consumers. To optimize acceptance of fro zen green pea products in the future it is necessary to have suitable metho ds that can be used in plant breeding for optimizing texture quality. Peas with a wide range of textural characteristics were selected during three pe a seasons and analyzed using chemical-physical measurements and sensory des criptive analysis. Determination of alcohol insoluble solids (AIS), dry wei ght, tenderometer value (TV), testa texture, cotyledon texture, and testa w eight were satisfactory methods for screening frozen green peas for sensory texture quality. AIS and dry weight could handle small unit sizes as requi red in plant breeding. Within the range of pea quality found in Denmark, th e AIS, dry weight and testa weight methods were highly correlated to sensor y mealiness, skin (testa) toughness, juiciness and crispness. Instrumental measurement of cotyledon texture was better related to sensory seed hardnes s than was instrumental seed texture. Sample size has to be reduced to make this method suitable for screening of plant material for hardness.