In order to evaluate the relation between the texture of food and its preference, the preference of liquid, gel and solid materials with salty or sweet taste was examined among university students. Experiment 1: Most prefered concentrations of NaCI and sucrose liquid were 0.59% and 3.96%, respectively. To these liquids, 2.5% gelatine was added, and liquid, gel and solid materials were made. For physically equivalent concentration, a significant preference for solid material to liquid and gel

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... erial was shown for both salty (NaCI) and sweet (sucrose) taste. Experiment 2 : For perceptually equivalent concentration, solid material was prefered to liquid material as well as for physically equivalent concentration. Experiment 3 : When monosodium glutamate (MSG), which has been considered to be a taste enhancer, was added to salty and sweet material, the solid material was prefered to the liquid and the gel material for a mixture of NaCI and MSG, but the gel was most prefered for a mixture of sucrose and MSG for physically equivalent concentration. Experiment 4 : For perceptually equivalent concentration, the difference of preference between solid and gel for the mixture of NaCI and MSG was not seen. For the mixture of sucrose and MSG the gel was prefered to liquid. These results suggested that for salty and sweet taste solid material was likely to be prefered to liquid and gel material, but in the condition with MSG the preference of food texture was changed, based on the taste qualities and the concentration.