Cauliflower

Pliny the Elder included cyma among cultivated plants he described in Natural History: "Ex omnibus brassicae generibus suavissima est cyma,"[3] ("Of all the varieties of cabbage the most pleasant-tasted is cyma").[4] Pliny's description likely refers to the flowering heads of an earlier cultivated variety of Brassica oleracea.[5]

In the Middle Ages, early forms of cauliflower were associated with the island of Cyprus, with the 12th- and 13th-century Arab botanists Ibn al-'Awwam and Ibn al-Baitar, claiming its origin to be Cyprus.[6][7] This association continued into Western Europe, where cauliflowers were sometimes known as Cyprus colewort, and there was extensive trade in western Europe in cauliflower seeds from Cyprus, under the French Lusignan rulers of the island, until well into the 16th century.[8]

François Pierre La Varenne employed chouxfleurs in Le cuisinier françois.[9] They were introduced to France from Genoa in the 16th century, and are featured in Olivier de Serres' Théâtre de l'agriculture (1600), as cauli-fiori "as the Italians call it, which are still rather rare in France; they hold an honorable place in the garden because of their delicacy",[10] but they did not commonly appear on grand tables until the time of Louis XIV.[11] It was introduced to India in 1822 by the British.[12]

The word "cauliflower" derives from the Italian cavolfiore, meaning "cabbage flower".[13] The ultimate origin of the name is from the Latin words caulis (cabbage) and flōs (flower).[14]

Orange and purple hybrids of cauliflower

Cauliflower is relatively difficult to grow compared to cabbage, with common problems such as an underdeveloped head and poor curd quality.[2]

There are four major groups of cauliflower.[16]

1. Italian: This specimen is diverse in appearance, biennial and annual in type. This group also includes white, Romanesco, various brown, green, purple, and yellow cultivars. This type is the ancestral form from which the others were derived.
2. Northern European annuals: Used in Europe and North America for summer and fall harvest, it was developed in Germany in the 18th century and includes the old cultivars Erfurt and Snowball.
3. Northwest European biennial: Used in Europe for winter and early spring harvest, this was developed in France in the 19th century and includes the old cultivars Angers and Roscoff.
4. Asian: A tropical cauliflower used in China and India, it was developed in India during the 19th century from the now-abandoned Cornish type[17] and includes old varieties Early Benaras and Early Patna.

Cauliflower production – 2020
Country	Production (millions of tonnes)
China	9.5
India	8.8
United States	1.3
Spain	0.7
Mexico	0.7
Italy	0.4
World	25.5
Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations[21]

In 2020, global production of cauliflowers (combined for production reports with broccoli) was 25.5 million tonnes, led by China and India which, combined, had 72% of the world total.[21] Secondary producers, having 0.4–1.3 million tonnes annually, were the United States, Spain, Mexico and Italy.[21]

Raw cauliflower is 92% water, 5% carbohydrates, 2% protein, and contains negligible fat (table). A 100-gram (3+1⁄2-ounce) reference amount of raw cauliflower provides 104 kilojoules (25 kilocalories) of food energy, and has a high content (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of vitamin C (58% DV) and moderate levels of several B vitamins and vitamin K (13–15% DV; table). Contents of dietary minerals are low (7% DV or less).

Cauliflower contains several non-nutrient phytochemicals common in the cabbage family that are under preliminary research for their potential properties, including isothiocyanates and glucosinolates.[22] Boiling reduces the levels of cauliflower glucosinolates, while other cooking methods, such as steaming, microwaving, and stir frying, have no significant effect on glucosinolate levels.[23]

Cauliflower heads can be roasted, grilled, boiled, fried, steamed, pickled, or eaten raw. When cooking, the outer leaves and thick stalks are typically removed, leaving only the florets (the edible "curd" or "head"). The leaves are also edible but are often discarded.[24]

Cauliflower is a low-calorie, gluten-free alternative to rice and flour. Between 2012 and 2016, cauliflower production in the United States increased 63%, and cauliflower-based product sales increased 71% between 2017 and 2018. Cauliflower rice is made by pulsing cauliflower florets followed by cooking the result in oil.[25][26] Cauliflower pizza crust is made from cauliflower flour and is popular in pizza restaurants.[27] Mashed cauliflower is a low-carbohydrate alternative to mashed potatoes.[28]

Cauliflower has been noticed by mathematicians for its distinct fractal dimension,[29][30] calculated to be roughly 2.8.[31][32] One of the fractal properties of cauliflower is that every branch, or "module", is similar to the entire cauliflower. Another quality, also present in other plant species, is that the angle between "modules," as they become more distant from the center, is 360 degrees divided by the golden ratio.[33]

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• Sharma, S.R.; Singh, P.K.; Chable, V. Tripathi, S.K. (2004). "A review of hybrid cauliflower development". Journal of New Seeds. 6 (2–3): 151. doi:10.1300/J153v06n02_08. S2CID 85136416.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cauliflower.

• PROTAbase on Brassica oleracea (cauliflower and broccoli)
• Orange Cauliflower Development