Saffron information

Saffron, the most expensive spice in the world, is derived from the dry stigmata of the saffron crocus Crocus sativus L., a member of the family Iridaceae. The plant is a sterile autotriploid cultigen, 2n = 24, possibly selected from C. cartwrightianum Herbet, of Greek origin. The family Iridaceae is included in the order Liliales, subclass Liliidae (Monocots), and is divided into four subfamilies; Crocus L. belongs to subfamily Ixioideae tribe Ixieae. C. sativus is a plant of 10-30 cm and has a corm-tunic finely fibrous; the fibres reticulate. It has 6-10 leaves present at anthesis, 1-2 flowers of a lilacpurple colour, with perianth segments of 3.5-5 cm and style branches of 2.5-3.2 cm. The yellow style is deeply divided into three branches, and the stigmata are bright red. The flowering season is from October to December.

The first mention of the crop of saffron dates back to 2300 BC. Sargon, founder of the Accadian empire, was born at an unknown village, the City of Saffron, ‘Azupirano’, near the river Euphrates in Babylon. The ‘Harvester of saffron’ appears in the Minoan pottery and frescoes (1700-1600 BC) of the Palace of Minos in Knossos (Crete). Another fresco dated about 1500 BC is at Akrotini on the Island of Thera (Santorini). ‘Krokos’ was the Greek word for saffron and appears in the songs IX and XII of the Iliad by Homer. In Greek mythology, Krokos, the lover of nymph Esmilax, was transformed into the plant saffron by Hermes. Saffron was also known in ancient Egypt and mentioned in the Eber’s papyrus. In the Bible, saffron was ‘karkon’ (in Hebrew) and is referred to in the Song of the Songs (4:14) of King Solomon X or IX century BC. There is evidence of its medicinal use in Kashmir in 500 BC. The word saffron is derived from the arabic word ‘Za.feraan’ and the Arabs are sometimes credited with the introduction of saffron in Spain around the tenth century.

In ancient times saffron was an important dye, but nowadays its main uses are cooking and colouring foods, especially Spanish rice (paella), bouillabaisse and in Cornwall, traditional saffron cakes and loaves. The major components responsible for the colouring strength of saffron are cis and trans crocins. Crocins are unusual water-soluble carotenoids. With concentrated sulphuric acid their red colour changes to blue (polychroit). Picrocrocin and crocin are easily oxidized by direct contact with oxygen in the air. As saffron is used chiefly as a food additive for flavouring and colouring, the process of autooxidation is undesirable. Samples of saffron stored at 0°C and -17°C and 0% relative moisture showed no change in crocin and picrocrocin content. Therefore, low moisture content and low temperature are the best storage conditions. The colouring strength and bitter taste of dehydrated saffron are five times more concentrated than those of fresh saffron.