saffron

The most precious and most expensive spice in the world: Saffron.The Saffron filaments, or threads, are actually the dried stigmas of the saffron flower, "Crocus Sativus Linneaus". Each flower contains only three stigmas. These threads must be picked from each flower by hand, and more than 75,000 of these flowers are needed to produce just one pound of Saffron filaments, making it the world?s most precious spice.But, because of saffron's strong coloring power and intense flavor, it can be used sparingly. Saffron is used both for its bright orange-yellow color and for its strong, intense flavor and aroma.
rocus Sativus Linneaus contains crocin, the source of its strong coloring property, bitter-crocin, which offers the distinctive aroma and taste and essential oils which are responsible for its therapeutic properties.Saffron is available both in filaments and powder, though the long, deep red filaments are usually preferable to the powder as the latter can be easily adulterated.Today, the greatest saffron producing countries are Greece, Spain, Turkey, Iran, India, and Morocco.The largest saffron importers are Germany, Italy, U.S.A., Switzerland, U.K., and France.

SAFFRON AND MEDICINEAs a therapeutically plant, saffron it is considered an excellent stomach ailment and an antispasmodic, helps digestion and increases appetite. It is also relieves renal colic, reduces stomachaches and relieves tension.During the last years it was used as a drug for flu-like infections, depression, hypatomegaly and as a sedative for its essential oils. It is also considered that in small quantities it regulates women's menstruation, and helps conception.It is a fact that even since antiquity, crocus was attributed to have aphrodisiac properties. Many writers along with Greek mythology sources associate crocus with fertility. Crocus in general is an excellent stimulant.

The history of saffron cultivation reaches back more than 3,000 years.The wild precursor of domesticated saffron crocus was Crocus cartwrightianus. Human cultivators bred wild specimens by selecting for unusually long stigmas. Thus, a sterile mutant form of C. cartwrightianus, C. sativus, emerged in late Bronze Age Crete.[22] Experts believe saffron was first documented in a 7th century BC Assyrian botanical reference compiled under Ashurbanipal. Since then, documentation of saffron's use over the span of 4,000 years in the treatment of some 90 illnesses has been uncovered.[23] Saffron has been used as a spice and medicine in the Mediterranean region since then, with usage and cultivation slowly spreading to other parts of Eurasia as well as North Africa and North America. In the last several decades, saffron cultivation has spread to Oceania.

Main article: Trade and use of saffron

Saffron's aroma is often described by connoisseurs as reminiscent of metallic honey with grassy or hay-like notes, while its taste has also been noted as hay-like and somewhat bitter. Saffron also contributes a luminous yellow-orange colouring to foods. Saffron is widely used in Iranian (Persian), Arab, Central Asian, European, Indian,Turkish, Moroccan and Cornish cuisines. Confectionaries and liquors also often include saffron. Common saffron substitutes include safflower (Carthamus tinctorius, which is often sold as "Portuguese saffron" or "assafroa") and turmeric (Curcuma longa). Medicinally, saffron has a long history as part of traditional healing; modern medicine has also discovered saffron as having anticarcinogenic (cancer-suppressing), anti-mutagenic (mutation-preventing), immunomodulating, and antioxidant-like properties. Saffron has also been used as a fabric dye, particularly in China and India, and in perfumery.
Most saffron is grown in a belt of land ranging from the Mediterranean in the west to Kashmir in the east. Annually, around 300 tonnes of saffron are produced worldwide.[6] Iran ranks first in the world production of saffron, with more than 81 percent of the world yield.Iran's annual saffron production is expected to hit 300 tons by the end of the nation's Fourth Five-Year Socioeconomic Development Plan in 2009. Other minor producers of saffron are Spain, India, Greece, Azerbaijan, Morocco, and Italy. A pound of dry saffron (0.45 kg) requires 50,000–75,000 flowers, the equivalent of a football field's area of cultivation.Some forty hours of frenetic day-and-night labour are needed to pick 150,000 flowers.Upon extraction, stigmas are dried quickly and (preferably) sealed in airtight containers.Saffron prices at wholesale and retail rates range from US$500/pound to US$5,000/pound (US$1100–US$11,000 per kilogram)—equivalent to £2,500/€3,500 per pound or £5,500/€7,500 per kilo. In Western countries, the average retail price is $1,000/£500/€700 per pound (US$2200/£1100/€1550 per kilogram).[2] A pound comprises between 70,000 and 200,000 threads. Vivid crimson colouring, slight moistness, elasticity, recent harvest date, and lack of broken-off thread debris are all traits of fresh saffron.
Greek red saffron or "Crocus", a pure product of the Greek agriculture, is considered the best in the world.A precious spice, adds an exquisite flavor and color to food and drinks. It is also used in distilleries, dairy products and in numerous other applications.A miracle of nature with a distinctive aroma and a honey-like taste, Saffron is the world's most expensive and unique in its origin. Saffron is the dried stigmas of the flower crocus.More than 50,000 of these stigmas are needed to produce just 100 gr of red Saffron.Greek saffron, has a coloring strength of 256, verified by laboratory reports, which is 45 points higher than the minimum international standard for all saffron
Common Name
SAFFRON
Click image to enlarge
Genus Species
Crocus sativus
Family
Iridaceae
Origin
Near East, possibly Asian Minor
Cultivated
Spain, Austria, Italy, Greece, France, Iran, Kashmir


Description
The purple crocus, Crocus sativus, has long been cultivated in Asia Minor and in Spain so that its hand-picked stigmas can be used both as a spice and as a brilliant red-yellow dye. The plant is now cultivated in India, Iran and several Mediterranean countries; it used to be grown in the southern England town, Saffron Walden. The yellow color of paella, bouillabaise, saffron cakes, challah bread, and some curry sauces is characteristically obtained from saffron. Unlike the cheaper turmeric, it can penetrate into rice grains, and a small amount can impart its flavor and smell to the food. Currently, saffron is one of the most expensive spices because it requires labor-intensive harvesting. The medicinal uses of saffron in the past included its general employment as an antidote against poisoning, a digestant, an aphrodisiac, a tonic, and as a specific for dysentery and measles. In accordance with the Doctrine of Signatures, its yellow color signified its natural ability to treat jaundice. See a list of spices by Taste and Hotness.
Useful Parts
The flower’s triple stigma, and the adjacent part of the style yield the spice.
Medicinal Properties
Currently some herbalists claim it has anti-cancer and other remarkable properties, but there is no evidence to support such beliefs.See chemicals in spices.
Historical View
“Saffron was formerly in great repute as a stimulant, antispasmodic, and emmenagogue; but at present it is scarcely ever employed in this country, or in the United States, as a medicinal agent, except that it is sometimes given to young children in exanthematous diseases from its reputed power of promoting the eruption.”Bentley, Robert and Henry Trimen. Medicinal Plants; being descriptions with original figures of the principal plants employed in medicine and an account of the characters, properties, and uses of their parts and products of medicinal value. London, Churchill, 1880. (WZ 295 B556m 1880)
Click image to enlarge


Health, January 2006
Surprising Saffron
by Amy Paturel, MS, MPH
There’s more to these delicate strands than you’d expect. New research shows saffron can boost your mood.
It’s the most expensive spice on Earth, and for good reason. It takes up to 75,000 handpicked blossoms—each with only 3 strands of saffron—to make just 1 pound of the high-maintenance ingredient. Why bother? Not only can a few threads add intense color and bold, honey-like flavor to an otherwise drab dish, but new research also shows that saffron offers plenty of unexpected health benefits, such as alleviating depression and even preventing cancer.
People who got 30 milligrams of saffron a day for 6 weeks reported the same improvement in their depression symptoms as those who received 20 milligrams of fluoxetine (a.k.a. Prozac), according to a preliminary study in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology. “Saffron enhances the activity of (mood-boosting) neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine and dopamine,” says Shahin Akhondzadeh-Basti, a clinical neuropsychopharmacology professor at Roozbeh Psychiatric Hospital in Tehran, Iran, the oldest academic psychiatric hospital in the Middle East.
And in another recent study published in Cancer Detection and Prevention, researchers touted saffron’s antitumor and cancer-preventive benefits. The spice is rich in antioxidants such as crocin, a carotenoid that helps prevent the spread and growth of cancer.
If you’ve never given saffron a shot because it’s expensive ($8 to $12 per gram) or you don’t know how to use it, then it’s time to rethink this potent spice. For best results, opt for saffron threads rather than powder (powdered saffron can taste medicinal and may be diluted with cheaper spices like turmeric). Store it in a cool, dark place or in your freezer for up to 2 years. “Toast the threads in a dry pan for a few seconds, or rub them between your hands to release saffron’s aroma and oils before steeping them in hot water,” advises Joyce Goldstein, a food consultant and cookbook author of Saffron Shores (Chronicle Books, 2002).
For every teaspoon of saffron in a recipe, add 5 teaspoons of liquid and soak for 20 minutes. If your dish includes broth or wine, pour a little of it over the saffron before making the recipe. And to make the most of your saffron, try the following simple ideas. (For more ideas and recipes, check out our sister publication’s Web site, CookingLight.com.)
· Add a few threads to fish soup, chowders, bouillabaisse, or stews when you begin cooking them.
· Steam mussels with saffron and orange peels.
· Stir a few threads (about ¼ teaspoon) saffron into boiling water when making pasta or risotto