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"Purple-flowered saffron is a wonderful plant to which
nature has given a fascinating fragrance, a beautiful color,
and a host of other qualities. Believed to have been
originally native to the Mediterranean area, Asia Minor, and
Iran, the saffron crocus has long been cultivated in Iran
and was taken from this country a number of other parts of
the world as a result of trade after its high quality and
distinctive properties were understood over centuries of its
application."
Treasured for its golden-colored, pungent stigmas, which are
dried and used to flavor and color foods and as a dye,
saffron cultivation is a particular Iranian agricultural
product whose method of production and preserving used to be
an unspoken secret for many years in the hearts of the
Iranian farmers.
With its strong , exotic aroma and bitter taste , saffron is
named among the sweet-smelling herbs in the Song of Solomon
. A golden-colored water soluble fabric dye was distilled
from saffron stigmas in India in ancient times. Shortly
after Buddha died ,his priests made saffron the official
color for their robes. The dye has been used for royal
garments in several cultures .
"As a perfume, saffron was strewn in Greek and Roman halls,
courts, theaters and balls ;it became especially associated
with the hetaerae, a professional class of Greek courtesans
.The streets of Rome were sprinkled with saffron when Nero
made his entry into the city"
Iran and Kashmir are among regions where saffron was
cultivated for the first time ,and its cultivation
development in other parts of the world is regarded as a
consequence of wars and conquests by foreign armies, When
Spain was conquered by the Muslims some products cultivable
in territories under Muslim influence were taken there for
cultivation in about 961 AD.
Saffron is supposed to have been introduced into China by
the Mongol invasion who took its bulbs from Iran. It is
mentioned in the Chinese material medical (Pun Tsaou
1552-78)
Saffron crocus, crocus sativus, is a bulbous perennial of
iris family (Iridaceous). Its plant has long and narrow
leaves with no petiole and grows directly form but also grow
occasionally in clusters.
Due to the long experience with the cultivation, and the
transfer of methods of growing and harvesting from person to
person, or generation to generation, Iranian saffron has
managed to keep its distinctive qualities in comparison with
those produced in other regions of the world. That might
also explain why Iranian saffron enjoys such an exceptional
recognition for its fragrance, flavor and color at
international markets.
In general, since the cultivation of saffron requires strong
sunshine and warm climate with clayey or sandy land, the
eastern part of Iran has a specially suitable environment
for its cultivation. The cultivation of saffron needs an
extreme climate; hot and dry weather in summer and cold in
winter. The land must be flat and without trees. In Iran
Farmers don't use the Chemical material for cultivation and
it is 100% organic.
Saffron, yielded from the stigma of the saffron flower, is
classified, packed and presented in terms of different parts
of stigma as follows:
Sargol Saffron
(All red filaments)
This is made up of the red stigmas which have been cut and
separated prior to drying. Stigmas cut this way provide
maximum flavor, aroma and natural dye in cooking and baking.
Improper harvesting and drying techniques seriously impact
ultimate saffron quality. SARGOL SAFFRON is 100% pure
saffron.
Poushali Saffron
The red parts of saffron flower's stigmas, obtained at the
beginning of harvest, a little longer than the "Sargol"
type, is called "poushali" in the form of triple filament.
The color of the mentioned part becomes pale red and orange
3 to 5mm after the existing joint among the 3 filaments. The
name of this type, i.e. "poushali", means massive for its
volume resulted from the time and method of harvesting.
"Poushali" has a little less power of coloring but same in
aroma as "Sargol" type.
Bunched Saffron
(Dasteh)
The all red and white parts of the stigmas bunched and
formed by a piece of thread is "bunch" type. Some customers
based on their usages prefer to by this type of Saffron.
Mixed Saffron
This type of Saffron consists of the white, yellow and red
parts of the stigmas, having high aroma with a length of 5
to 15mm, is used as an aromatic substance for foods.
Saffron is the world's most expensive spice. And that is
because it uses only the three strands of the Crocus Sativus
flower - a type of iris, which blossoms in the autumn in the
northern hemisphere. At the time of harvest the three red
strands or stigma need to be plucked from each flower by
hand. This is time consuming and very labor intensive. About
500,000 strands will need to be gathered in this way in
order to produce 1kg (~2.2lbs) of this precious spice.
Storage
Saffron must be stored in a cool dark place. It is customary
to wrap saffron in foil and place in a tin or jar with a
tight fitting lid. |
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