Saffron is made by extracting essential oils from pure saffron threads.
The result is an intensely flavored extract that can be used to add color and flavor to a variety of dishes. It has a deep red-orange color and an intense aroma with hints of honey, hay and grassy notes.
Saffron is not only a golden-yellow coloring spice, but also a highly potent remedy. It is considered a natural sexual enhancer – for both men and women. At the same time, the spice is effective for depression and PMS.
Its taste can range from slightly sweet to bitter and is often described as earthy and nutty.
Liquid saffron is stronger than regular saffron, so it can be used in smaller amounts to achieve the same flavor.
The price of saffron is between 6 and 8 euros for 1 gram of it.
Since saffron also contains powerful antioxidants, it has anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. As a little bonus, the appetite-suppressing saffron helps with weight loss.
Saffron seems to be a real insider tip for everyone who finally wants to have fun in life again.
Nikrang saffron; as one of the best saffron producers, wants to explain medicinal benefits of saffron in this article.
Do you know why saffron is so expensive and popular among all areas around the world?
Saffron called “Zaferan” in Persian, is often considered as the most expensive spice in the world. Due to widespread demand, several nations have started cultivating the saffron plant, which resembles a small purple flower.
Due to their fragility, saffron flowers must be grown and picked by hand after proper drying. The quality of the saffron is determined by its drying and also by its extraction.
But which nation is known for producing the highest quality saffron?
According to Nikrang saffron, Iran is the best nation which produce saffron. This product is called Persian saffron or Iranian saffron.
Iran is the main supplier of saffron worldwide. 90-96 percent of saffron is grown in Iran today, about 120-190 tons of the precious spice are harvested there every year and 140-210 tons of saffron are traded worldwide.
Most of the country’s saffron is harvested in the region around Mashhad in eastern Iran. Thousands of years ago, people in Iran, formerly Persia, cultivated the valuable plant.
Thus, Persian kings wore shoes and robes dyed with saffron. In the past, the medicinal herb was used more than today as a medicine and coloring agent.
The quality of the harvested saffron threads is the best in the world and their coloring power is the most intense.
Iranian saffron is now mostly exported to the world. But the people of Iran also use Iranian saffron in the kitchen. Iranian called saffron, safron or zaferan.
For the Iranian national dishes, various cuts of meat such as beef, lamb and veal fillet are marinated. The marinade consists of onions, garlic, yogurt, lime juice, salt and saffron. Later, the pieces of meat are grilled and served with rice. Fragrant rice in Iran is also often refined with saffron.
Saffron consists of the dried flower stigmas of the crocus “Crocus sativus”. This crocus originally comes from other countries and is now mainly cultivated in Iran. The crocus blooms for two weeks in the fall. During this time, the purple flowers are hand-picked in the morning before it gets hot.
Each flower contains three reddish-brown to orange pistils that are dried. In order to obtain 1 kg of saffron, 150,000 to 200,000 pistils must be harvested and dried in laborious manual work! This also explains the high price.
How to infuse saffron?
To avoid nasty surprises from fake saffron, you should always buy saffron tips. You can then use both whole threads and powder freshly ground in a mortar/ mortar for cooking.
If you use saffron threads, then you should steep them in a liquid. The longer the better. If you help with heat, then you reduce the smell.
Saffron releases its many ingredients slowly. That’s why you need a mortar and a liquid to get everything into the food in its entirety, evenly and gently. Crush the saffron in a mortar and then add it to some water, wine, vinegar, milk, soup, etc. To preserve the saffron aroma as much as possible, the liquid should not be warmer than 45 degrees.
With unroasted saffron, the epidermis (skin around the saffron tips) remains firm, so it takes significantly longer than roasted saffron to release the ingredients into the liquid. If they destroy the epidermis with a mortar, then it works immediately.
It would be perfect if you heat the saffron tips for a few minutes at around 40 – 45 degrees (e.g. on a plate in the oven) before crushing them. The heat releases the full aroma of saffron. Heat, on the other hand, destroys the aroma. Depending on how you steep the saffron, it develops more taste or more smell, is more cheering up or calming, tart or sweeter.
The yellow color of best saffron like Saffron Ghaenat comes from the water-soluble substance crocin. The faster saffron colors, the drier it is. However, this meant that it had to be exposed to a longer and/or intense heat source when drying. It’s not good for the flavor.
The aromatic substances typical of saffron only develop during the drying and storage of the saffron tips. Picrocrocin (saffron bitter) is responsible for the slightly tart, earthy taste of saffron. In addition, there are many healing substances in saffron.
If you don’t want to miss out on the decorative effect of the saffron tips, then you need to give the saffron time to fully enjoy its unique aroma and taste. You should put the saffron tips in a liquid for at least 24 hours so that they can develop their diverse aromas.
Only when the tips are pale and drained has the saffron really released all its ingredients into the liquid. You can also pulverize some in the mortar and add some as threads.
However, Persian cuisine likes a lot of white rice, in addition to the side salad, too few vegetables for my needs and unfortunately rather a lot of oil. It also tastes fantastic, so harmonious and heavenly, I keep having to make more!
But there are a lot of legumes, always yoghurt, lots of fruit and healthy snacks: dried sour cherries and apricots, wonderful dates, sweet tamarinds, saffron pistachios… Honestly, you have to visit a Persian shop and can buy saffron online from Nikrang saffron.
Iranian are able to cook rice in a professional way. Actually, as it is one of the main part of their food, they pride themselves on their skills. A large number of Iranian use saffron when they are cooking rice.
So, grind a packet of saffron in a mortar with a pinch of ordinary sugar or coconut blossom sugar. If you don’t have a mortar, you can use a sugar cube to grind instead. That’s how the Persians do it, but it’s more difficult.
Keep the powder tightly sealed, e.g. in a jar in the fridge. Then there is practically no expiry date.