What is Saffron?

Saffron (Crocus sativus) is a spice that only grows in select areas in the world. The spice is cultivated by removing the stigmas from the flower after it has bloomed. Usually the gestation period for a saffron flower is 5 months. The stigma or thread that grows out from the base of the flower is the part used for cooking and is always a deep crimson color; the flowers are a pastel purple color. Usually there are 3 stigmas per flower; cultivating a kilogram of saffron requires around 75,000 flowers.

Saffron exhibits a honey like aroma that has slight hint of grass or hay. There are several different types of saffron and they are usually characterized and named depending on where they are grown. The three major types of saffron are Kashmiri, Spanish and Persian and are sometimes called Mongra, Coupe and Sargol respectively. These types of saffron grow in the regions for which they are named.

Saffron stigmas are always a deep crimson color and give off a deep, rich yellow color when used in food or for dying clothes. Saffron sometimes is packaged to include the style, which is the part of the saffron that connects the stigma to the base of the flower. SaffronChef.com does not sell saffron with the styles as they have zero cooking or dying properties.

Saffron can come packaged as the threads or as powder which is simply the threads crushed into powder form.