Crazy About Saffron!

Appears in

Published 1982

About

Saffron has been treasured throughout history. In the days of ancient Greece it appeared in myth—the mortal Crocus was turned into a saffron-bearing flower after the nymph Smilax rejected his amorous advances. In fourteenth-century Florence, it was easier to use saffron as collateral for a bank loan than coins. The Swiss even started a war over saffron (yes, the Swiss!). Today, it is grown and gathered in Spain, Greece, Kashmir, Morocco, Italy, Switzerland, Iran, and the U.S.

Saffron comes from a particular crocus flower—crocus sativus—and it is the crimson red stigmas at the center that are plucked and dried to make the spice we use. It’s expensive because the gathering of the crocus and the plucking and the toasting of the stigma is still done by hand. It takes approximately 100,000 flowers to make one pound of saffron. Perhaps it’s really a bargain.

Get instant online access via ckbk

Already a member?

‌

This à la carte title is available to ckbk members for a one-off payment of

‌‌

'Brilliant app for foodies'

'Spotify of cookbooks'

Part of

Soups of The Sea

The licensor does not allow printing of this title