Today, chemical disinfectants with side effects on health are used to decontaminate vegetables such as cauliflower. These chemical disinfectants can be replaced by natural materials such as salt and vinegar. The purpose of this study was to determine the most convenient way of washing with salt and vinegar solutions to decrease microbial community before usage. The effectiveness of salt (5%, 10.77% and 16.54%) and vinegar (1.5%, 18.25% and 35%) on fungi, Staphylococcus aureus and coliform growth using response surface methodology was investigated. In addition, the antibacterial property of disinfectant solutions was determined by agar well diffusion assay. Results showed that washing with a solution containing 35% vinegar and 16.54% salt for five minutes was able to produce a significant 3.81 ± 0.62, 3.38 ± 0.21 and 3.18 Log reduction for fungi, coliform and S. aureus, respectively. Evaluation of the antimicrobial potential of vinegar and salt by agar well diffusion assay showed that the combination of salt accompanied with vinegar created a significant inhibitory zone of Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, S. aureus, and Bacillus cereus growth. Using of the solution containing 35% vinegar and 16.54% salt in washing Cauliflower is recommended.
