Saffron

Saffron is one of the highly prized spices known since antiquity for its color, flavor and medicinal properties and also can be used as a fabric dye. It is the dried “stigma” or threads of the flower of the Crocus sativus plant. It is a bulbous perennial plant that belongs to the family of Iridaceae, in the genus, Crocus, and known botanically as Crocus sativus. Statistical figures showed that Iran is the dominant supplier of the world’s most expensive spice in the global market. Aromatic strands of crocus sativus Saffron has been cultivated for more than millenniums in Iran and is the strategic agricultural products of Iran , which more than %90 of world production of this Treasure of Spice, comes from hear every year. Iranian Saffron known as the “red gold”, saffron is a magical ingredient in Persian culture, from aromatic foods and colorful desserts, to the physical and spiritual medicine.

Types

Crocin is a chemical that is responsible for the color of Saffron. The higher the Crocin the higher the coloring strength of Saffron. Customers demand high Crocin level Saffron. Safranal is a constituent responsible for the aroma of Saffron. In other words, it is why saffron smells how it does. Picrocrocin is why saffron tastes a little bit bitter and it is responsible for the taste of Saffron.

NeginNegin

super Neginsuper Negin

SargolSargol

PushalPushal

BunchBunch

Types	Grades/Description
Negin	This kind of saffron is longer and thicker than common saffron.
Sargol	Grade A		Grade B
	This kind of saffron contains the stigma without the style. All broken parts are removed.		This kind of saffron contains the stigma without the style. It has some broken parts.
Pushal	Grade A	Grade B		Grade C
	This kind of saffron contains stigma along with very low parts of style (yellow part). The maximum floral waste is %5.	This kind of saffron contains stigma along with low parts of style (yellow part). The maximum floral waste is %10.		This kind of saffron contains stigma along with longer parts of style (yellow part). The maximum floral waste is %20.
Bunch	This kind of Saffron contains the stigma with the whole style.

Process

Iran’s climate is suitable for growing saffron. The Best saffron is Iranian saffron all over the world. Most of the saffron Iran Produces are from Kurdistan province, Kermanshah province, and Razavi Khorasan Province.

Good saffron crop production demands cool dry climate with well-drained rich fertile soil and irrigation facilities or sufficient amount of rain fall. The flowers are generally harvested during the early-morning hours and soon their stigma separated, allowed to dry, and packed for marketing. The Crocus sativus plant grows to about 15-20cm in height and bears lavender colored flowers during each season which lasts from October until November. Each flower features perianth consisting of a stalk, known as “style,” connecting to three “stigmas” or threads to the rest of the plant. These red-yellow colored stigmas along with the “style” constitutes “saffron” which is used as condiment spice. Saffron has been the world’s most expensive spice by weight for decades. It takes 150,000 flowers to make 1 kilogram of saffron.

Saffron, golden-coloured, pungent stigmas (pollen-bearing structures) of the autumn crocus (Crocus sativus), which are dried and used as a spice to flavour foods and as a dye to colour foods and other products. Saffron has a strong, exotic aroma and a bitter taste and is used to colour and flavour many Mediterranean and Asian dishes, particularly rice and fish, and English, Scandinavian, and Balkan breads.

Saffron is cultivated chiefly in Iran but is also grown in Spain, France, Italy (on the lower spurs of the Apennines Range), and parts of India. A labour-intensive crop, the three stigmas are handpicked from each flower, spread on trays, and dried over charcoal fires for use as a food flavouring and colouring. A pound (0.45 kilogram) of saffron represents 75,000 blossoms. Saffron contains 0.5 to 1 percent essential oil, the principal component of which is picrocrocin. The colouring matter is crocin. Saffron has a distinct flavor that comes from chemical compounds in it such as picrocrocin, and safranal. It also contains a natural carotenoid chemical compound, crocin, which gives saffron its golden-yellow hue. These traits along with its medicinal properties make it a valuable ingredient in many cuisines worldwide.

Saffron crocus blooms in the fall over the course of three weeks, when the saffron crocus harvesting commences. When it’s time to pick saffron, harvesting saffron growers may work up to 19 hour days to carefully reap the blooms and then extract the few stigmas, which are then dried over heat and packaged for sale to international markets.

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