What is saffron? This is the question we get asked most often about this seemingly exotic spice, and it is a fairly logical question to ask because saffron has been cultivated and used for thousands of years.
The great thing about saffron is the amazing range of benefits that it provides. Not only does it taste great, but it also has a natural calming effect on your body. Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of the saffron crocus (Crocus sativa). “Saffron” may also refer to the stigmas of the saffron crocus, called threads.
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus. It is commonly used in cooking to provide a bitter, tangy, and slightly metallic taste and deep yellow color. Saffron, which is native to Western Asia, was probably first cultivated in Greece; it has been found in the tombs of pharaohs that date back to 3000 B.C.
Be aware it may be your next business or even your next meal. It can save you from depression or improve your facial skin structure. It is back to your goal of using it. Now I can answer you: what is saffron? Saffron is a very generous spice.
What is Saffron?
Saffron is a spice with multiple medical and spicy uses in our daily life. This magic spice is a product of a plant named Crocus Sativus, a domesticated species of the crocus family, so we probably have some species of this plant that aren’t edible.
Crocus sativus produce saffron flowers, and saffron flowers should be harvested and cleaned to be obtained saffron threads. Saffron is the initial and raw material of Crocus Sativus that can be used directly or processed into saffron by-products such as saffron extracts.
What are Saffron Benefits?
Saffron benefits are the why for the popularity of saffron among the people. In other words, when we want to buy a spice for our foods, we care about our health, and saffron can be our hero in this case.
Some of the saffron benefits for health are as follows:
- Anticancer
- Antioxidant activity
- Reduce PMS symptoms
- Improve heart function
- Help to weight loss
- Improve structure of hair
- Prevent and improve depression
How to Use Saffron
Using saffron is very simple, powder it, add boiling water, and let it brew. Now you can add this extract to everything that you want.
So follow this method:
- Grind the saffron with a mortar
- Add some water to the powder and let it boil
- Brewing should belong for 15 minutes
- Your final extract is ready
source: persianfoodtours.com
What is Saffron Used for?
It’s better to say that we have no limitations for using saffron. We can use it in every food, drink, and any other food type that exists in the world. It is dry and hot naturally and can be compatible with any food culture. We prepared a list of the most famous saffron foods and drinks in this section.
- Saffron tea
- Saffron milk
- Saffron rice
- Saffron ice cream
- Paella
- Risotto
- Saffron fish
The Best Saffron in the World
To find the best saffron in the world, we should look at saffron producer countries in the world. Countries such as Iran, India, Greece, Afghanistan, and others countries are the biggest saffron producers globally.
Iran is the biggest saffron producer in the world, with a production of 430 tons of saffron in 2019. Also, Indian farms with 22 tons are in second place.
Based on our research and customer feedback in more than ten countries, Persian saffron is the best saffron in the world. It is natural and back to their experience and power of production. Also, you may hear something about Spain saffron and Spain brand companies.
Based on our research, Spain is a prominent trader in the retail market but doesn’t have much production. Iran farms produce raw materials and export as wholesale to Spain companies. Be aware that we are speaking about 60 tons of world saffron in this cycle.
Saffron As a Spice
Saffron can act as a perfect spice, and this claim comes from saffron’s properties as a food supplement. Some of the saffron properties as herbs are;
- Lovely color
- Pleasant perfume
- Unique taste
- High compatibility with a variety of foods
- Long history in popular culture
Wikipedia; A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance used to flavor or color food.
Each of these saffron features is specific and tops in the spice world. Saffron has high coloring power and is used in many foods, desserts, and drinks, such as saffron rice, saffron ice cream, saffron tea, and saffron milk.
Also, saffron is compatible with foods and can be used in very different food cultures. Travel to any country you like and find saffron in food services; from Japan to America, this is our famous worldwide spice.
Saffron As a Medicinal Herb
Saffron can act as a perfect medicinal herb. Saffron is rich in therapeutic micronutrients, each of which alone can improve or accelerate the healing process of many serious diseases.
Many people in East Asia, including India and China, consider saffron a medicinal plant and consider it part of the disease treatment process. So it can be said that saffron while being a valuable spice, is also a miraculous medicinal plant.
- Saffron benefits for men
- Improve heart function
- Improve hair structure
- Anti depression
- Immune system regulate
Saffron has good potential for use in the pharmaceutical industry, and this isn’t by accident. Saffron can treat or prevent many human diseases. Saffron may not be as fast as chemical drugs in this mission, but it has some features that force us to think of it as a way to treat it.
Saffron is a herbal drug and doesn’t have severe and dangerous side effects in the usual dosage. For example, in depression disease, chemical drug is necessary, and we must use them based on our physician’s opinion, but this isn’t the whole story. These drugs have some side effects, such as sexual disorders induced by some medications such as Fluoxetine.
Researches show that saffron can help us in 3 fields of this disease;
- Prevention
- Increase the speed of treatment
- Improve disease complications
So, it seems that saffron can help us to win over depression. also, you can read these sources for more information; saffron for depression and research.
How do People Look at Saffron?
Based on our field research in some countries, saffron is known as a medicinal herb in the mind of people, and they usually buy saffron for its medical benefits. We have lots of saffron processed products developed for the profit of saffron benefits.
For the start of my research, I went to a drugstore and looked at a medicinal herb shelf. There was a drug for weight loss, and one of its compositions was saffron. We know saffron is helpful for weight loss, and a company uses this and makes new products. In my opinion, this is a start for the new herbal drug age.
What is saffron’s Role in Culture?
Saffron’s role in human culture is very undeniable and also complex. If you look at Persian lifestyles, you will find It can’t be only a common spice and have a profound role in their life flow.
We asked Persian people about their feeling when they are using saffron, and their answer was as follows:
1. It brings a good feeling about the past days of me my life.
Also, a spice trader says to us; that there is always some saffron in the house of Iranians, like bread or anything essential else. Some of the most critical roles of this spice are as follows:
- As a gift
- Ceremonial drinks and celebrations
- Business
- Food industry
- Medicinal plants industry
- Advanced pharmaceutical industry
Saffron Business Opportunities
USA, UK, and Ca spice markets are among the biggest and best saffron markets in the world. The average saffron price in this area is high, and we have an exceptional opportunity to produce and trade saffron. The amount of saffron imported to the USA is about 20 tons per year, and the most pessimistic consumption is close to 100 tons.
There was a small gap in this market, and there are multiple opportunities like this worldwide. Markets like China, Europe, and Arab countries are ready for the formation of saffron businesses. China is one of the best regional markets for saffron trade.
Growing Saffron
Growing saffron is the starting point of this cycle. We can plant this spice all over the world, and there’s no severe limitation for us. We need ten tons of saffron bulbs per hectare, and then we can harvest 20-25 kg of saffron for seven years.
Note that we cultivate once and harvest for up to seven years. After seven years, your saffron bulbs multiplied, and have increased up to seven times and you can increase your farm area up to seven times.
Processing
This spice has the highest development and process capability among other herbs. In the eyes of the people, saffron is the king of spices. So we can create added value by converting it to multiple products in the health and food industries.
Do you want to get an idea? First, go to saffron benefits and learn about its uses, then go to market and find gaps, now start to analyze and make values.
Author Notes: The world of this spice is so much bigger than this, so I refer to some aspects that were necessary. If you want to get more information about it, we can talk directly on Kohan Rishe socials or by email.
Conclusion
I hope this blog was useful to you. I remember when I went looking for information about saffron, I could only find bits and pieces about what it is. I had to rely on my memory for details, which was not ideal.
So I wanted to share with everyone everything I knew about saffron, along with photos to illustrate the blog.
