Working With Saffron

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

Pulled out my saffron book, which I hadn't really looked at closely,
and discovered that it was written by a local gal.  And is  autographed
to boot. Sat down at my scanner and it was so interesting  I could
hardly get up. There's a lot of historical stuff, but I  thought you
might be interested in what it says about countries  propagating and
selling the corms++Japan, the Netherlands and Oregon,  USA!  This first
post is about how to prepare the stuff for use.  Saffron is no more
difficult to work with than any other herb or  spice, but it is
different.  Central to getting good results is not  to be wasteful and
at the same time to respect saffron's potency.  These two rules
contradict each other only if you have measured out  too much saffron
to begin with. To be fully activated, saffron  threads (hereafter
referred to as threads) must come in contact with:  HEAT, ALCOHOL,
CITRUS OR MUST BE POUNDED IN A MORTAR.  I discovered how long good
threads release color and flavor by  pouring two kettles worth of
boiling water over 1/2 teaspoon of  threads (1/4 gram) and leaving them
overnight.  By morning I had  enough yelloworange liquid to make 40
glasses of tea by adding lemon  juice, sugar and ice cubes to the
concentrate.  Threads can also be steeped in lemon juice, rose or
orange water,  stocks, bouillons, vinegar, or white wine.  I find red
wine too heavy  to use with saffron.  No cookbook authors seem to agree
on how long  saffron should steep (opinions vary from 3 minutes to 48
hours!). For  practicality and cost effectiveness, I have settled on 20
minutes.  You can achieve great color (pale custard to vibrant
yellow-orange)  in a matter of minutes with good saffron.  It is the
flavor which  takes longer to come out.  I find that as long as I begin
my prep  work with the steeping, I do not prolong my time in the
kitchen.  It  is a matter of getting in the habit.  As long as I steep
my threads  for 20 minutes, it does not seem to matter when I add them
to what I  am cooking.  I was surprised to see Gina Sarra, my hostess
in Italy's Abruzzo, add  the saffron paste, made ahead by adding
boiling water to powder, to  her spaghetti just before she served it.
Again, the key is in  activating the spice with heat.  POWDERED
SAFFRON:  I have not found it necessary to steep powdered saffron.
When I bake  I find it practical to use powder because it works into
chilled butter  nicely.  The butter's hard surface necessitates the
right amount of  pressure to release saffron's color and flavor.  Room
temperature  butter is too soft to release color although the flavor
seems to  release regardless. If you prefer, saffron can be added to
milk or  water in a baking recipe as well.  Keep in mind 1/2 teaspoon
of threads crushes down to a scant 1/8  teaspoon of powder.  This is
why powdered saffron appears so much  more expensive than threads.  If
you are particularly interested in  powder, you can often find it in
Italian delicatessens and gourmet  shops.  Powdering threads is simple.
In the beginning, use a heavy skillet  with white insides against which
you will be able to monitor the dark  threads easier than you can in a
black skillet.  Over low heat, toast  the threads just until crispy
enough to crumble with your fingers (no  more than 2 minutes).  It is
not a good idea to have your attention  on any other prep work while
you do this.  Dump the crispy threads  onto kitchen paper and crush
them with the back of an ordinary metal  spoon.  From "Wild About
Saffron++A Contemporary Guide to an Ancient Spice",  by Ellen Szita.
Published by Saffron Rose, 28 John Glenn Circle,  Daly City, Ca.,
94105.  1987.  Posted by Stephen Ceideberg; March 30 1993.  File
ftp://ftp.idiscover.co.uk/pub/food/mealmaster/recipes/cberg2.zip

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