Saffron
Too much of a good thing can be very, very bad. This
is particularly true with saffron. Although exotic, beautiful and certainly
delicious, it contains a poison that acts on the nervous system and can damage
the kidneys. In large doses it is simply narcotic, but ingest 10 to 12 grams of
it and you’re a goner. The pale yellow crystals of meadow saffron, a
closely related flower, are fatal in even smaller amounts: death comes by
respiratory paralysis in 7 to 36 hours.
I
find this tidbit of culinary caution worrisome. You see, there is a balance,
when using saffron, between price, quality, and potency. The lower the cost,
the lower the quality, and the more of these potentially fatal filaments you
will need to use to achieve the desired intensity of color and flavor. In other
words, if you dare to use it at all, spring for the good stuff – the
survival of yourself and hungry loved ones is at
stake.
I wish I had known all this before
yesterday. In the grocery store I balked at McCormick’s jar of saffron
(weighing in at .04 ounces and selling for a mean $16.99) and thought I had
struck gold in the Latin foods aisle, where I came across a petite box of the
stuff for $1.50. I got what I paid for. My cheap saffron was desperately
lacking in strength and I had to use almost all of it last night making paella
for two. The paella was delicious – a gorgeous mix of chicken, sausage,
shrimp, red peppers and peas scattered throughout the yellow rice – but at
what cost!?!
Saffron is the most
precious and expensive spice in the world, often retailing for over $35 an
ounce. The deep red threads are actually the dried stigmas of a variety of
crocus, Crocus Sativus
Linneaus. Each flower blooms once, during the
fall, and unveils three delicate red stigmas which must be harvested quickly and
gently by hand. Over 75,000 flowers are needed to produce one single pound of
saffron. Luckily, because of its concentrated coloring power, it can be used
sparingly. With high quality saffron, a few short threads will produce that
bold, deep yellow, mustardy hue so coveted by paella eaters, makers of
bouillabaisse, devotees of St. Lucia, and Buddhist
monks.
Concentrated in the tip of each
stigma is a triad of chemicals: crocin is responsible for the vivid color;
safranol for aroma; and picrocrocin for saffron’s distinctive and
treasured taste: at once musky, spicy, and infused with the natural sweetness
of honey – you taste it in the back of your throat.
In its purest form, only the red section
of the stigma is sold as saffron. As the stigma descends into the flower, it
loses color and appears much lighter, yellow, or white. These parts lack
culinary value – they serve as filler in less expensive saffron. The
question burning on my lips is whether they also lack venom. I don’t
exaggerate when I tell you that I used a
lot of saffron in our paella last night. While
I remain hopeful that I didn’t administer a lethal dose, I can’t
imagine that we will escape completely unscathed. Jacob seems to be fine thus
far, but I’ve been flushed all day and am closely monitoring the
situation.
Posted: Fri - November 5, 2004 at 04:37 PM