Saffron is noted as a spice “worth its weight in gold” and I am in the extremely fortunate position of working my way through a 1oz tin from Rumi Spice, a perk of my job. A large pinch of Rumi’s hand picked saffron threads make their way into the Saffron Chicken Pilaf recipe below.

Let’s look at the reasons why saffron can command such a high price on the world spice markets, between $5 and $10 per gram.

The saffron crocus or Crocus Sativus, has traditionally has been cultivated across a large band of Eurasia. From La Mancha in Spain, to Afghanistan and beyond. Iran ranks as the world’s #1 producer, while new growers are popping up in unlikely places such as Canada and Great Britain. 

Crocus flowers thrive in hot, semi-arid conditions. Rumi Spice harvest their saffron threads pre-dawn, from the flowers growing in the sun drenched fields of the arable provinces in Afghanistan. Each flower contains just 3 saffron stigma (threads), so to glean my 1oz of saffron requires the harvest of more than 6000 flowers, by hand, at between 6 and 12 hours of manual labor. The stigma are removed, again by hand, dried and packaged for onward sale as our beloved saffron. 

Grading, Color and Flavor

The vivid color and intensity of flavor of saffron is derived from a variety of volatile oils within its chemical make up. Those flavors are best released by dissolving saffron in water based liquids, hence their role in infusing rice based dishes, and slow cooked Moroccan Tagines. Saffron essentially contains three active ingredients, which play a role in the overall grading, and Rumi boasts the top grade.

• crocin, which determines the intensity of the colour,

• picrocrocin, which determines the power of the flavour,

• safranal, which determines the strength of the aroma.

In addition to the fragrant act that saffron performs in the kitchen, it is used as fabric dye, in cosmetics, and in Ayurvedic medicine.

Why We Love Rumi Saffron

There are many reasons why we love Rumi Spice. As a team of US military veterans who served time in Afghanistan, their return home led to a powerful mission: to cultivate peace in Afghanistan through growing and harvesting of saffron. Rumi is empowering Afghan farmers and paying direct wages to women and men with a desire to unlock the economic potential in these rural communities. In addition, they are a Chicago based certified B Corporation using food as a force for good. For these reasons we only use Rumi Saffron in our very own Moroccan Tagine Whole Spice Infusion. 

Beautifully packaged so that no gift wrapping is required, the Rumi Gift Saffron is 2g of culinary red gold. It makes a wonderful addition to a home cook’s kitchen cabinet, and features in the pilaf recipe this week.

This one pot wonder of meat, grains and stock is infused with the warm, comforting flavors of the herbs, spices and honey.

Cooks Note:

This is a dish which I would not recommend slow cooking, the rice doesn’t cook well. 

Resources:

I love this new book by Stuart Farrimond – The Science of Spice

Print Recipe

Pressure Cooker Chicken, Saffron, Honey & Pine Nut Pilaf

Pressure Cook: Prep Time: 12m , Cook Time: 8m, Servings: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups / 1 large onion diced
• 2 tsp / 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 1/2 cups basmati rice
• 1/2 cup / 2 oz pine nuts
• 1 1/2 cups broth
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp saffron
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 lb chicken thighs, skinless & boneless chopped into 1" pieces

Instructions

• heat the oil in Instant Pot on high sauté function
• add the onion and sauté for 3 minutes until softened
• turn off sauté function & stir in garlic, rice, & pine nuts
• in a measuring jug mix the broth, cinnamon, thyme, saffron, honey, salt, and pepper
• pour the broth mixture into the rice and stir
• lay the pieces of diced chicken onto the top of the rice
• secure Instant Pot lid & set pressure valve to Sealing cook on Manual / Pressure Cook for 8 minutes
• once cooked turn the dial to Venting to Quick Pressure Release and serve immediately while the rice is fluffy
  

Zen Moment

“Raise your words, not voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.”

– Rumi (Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi)