What do do with a lot of saffron?

[flubber2012]

Hi,

I apologize if this was covered in another thread...I did a search and no joy.

I have a lot (I would say 20-30 times the amount that you buy in a bottle of Spice Islands at the grocery store) of older saffron (maybe 2-3 years old...unopened) that I found in my cupboard...way too much to use in risotto or boulabaisse or aioli.

Any other ideas?

TIA!

[pitterpatter]

I buy my saffron by the ounce, and have never had a problem with keeping it in the freezer. I give clumps of it to friends, and an ounce lasts me for a couple of years. I use it in stews basically every week, as I cook a stew every weekend.

[Caitlin McGrath]

Saffron-pistachio shortbread cookies are really good: http://www.chow.com/recipes/29683-saf...

[rose water]

Wow, that sounds delicious! As did your cake. Inspired...

[HillJ]

I'm going to try both of Caitlin's rec's. We rec'd saffron @ Christmas and haven't used any of it YET.

[mamachef]

You can take a quart container of best-quality plain yogurt, and line a strainer w/ cheesecloth (2 layers) or coffee filters, set it over a bowl, and put the yogurt in. Let it drain in the fridge overnight. Now, warm a T. milk in the microwave and add 1 t. crushed saffron and let it steep for half an hour. Strain it, and stir in 6 T. plain sugar and a half-cup of crushed pistachios. Serve it to 6-8 people for dessert. I totally can't remember the name of it, but I believe the origin is Indian, and it's a very beautiful, creamy rich subtle dessert.

[CanadaGirl]

It's called "shrikhand". I posted a link to a recipe above that is very similar to yours :)

[mamachef]

I didn't see that!! Sorry to copycat you. I have some bad habits and jumping in without prior investigation is one of them. But now I know the name, and thank you for that!!

[CanadaGirl]

Oh, the copycatting doesn't bother me - great minds and all! I just wanted to let you know the name since you forgot :)

[Caroline1]

If you know any Bhuddhist monks, you could dye a new robe for one of them.

Kidding aside, If you just found it and it's not just sitting there open, use it at your normal pace but close it tight when through, put it in a zip lock bag, get all of the air out and toss it in the freezer between uses. If you hae a vacuum sealer, so much the better. This is how I keep all of my really special/expensive/hard-to-find spices and such. I have a nice stash of frozen dried morels. And other stuff.

[lidia]

For lunch, I just finished off the leftovers of a pasta dish that calls for saffron: cooked cauliflower, garlic, some tomato paste, hot pepper anchovies and saffron. Abundant olive oil. I got the recipe from "Papa Andrea's Sicilian Table". You can also do a version with raisins (I prefer currants) and pine nuts, and onion instead of garlic, as shown here: http://nerodiseppiaenglish.wordpress....

In the second version link ingredients, a "bag" of saffron is a tiny pouch of powered saffron as sold in Italian supermarkets, but would translate to a pinch of real saffron (1/4-1/8 tsp.) softened in a small amt. of warm water (add the water, too).

[wyogal]

Did you watch Top Chef? You could use it to garnish meatballs....... hahahahahaha! (no, no, no)

[DGresh]

I think that was "Worst Cooks" (deservedly) :)

[wyogal]

OMG, of course!!!! I watched that right after catching the end of TC. ha!

[Indirect Heat]

Shakshuka. We make this frequently, because it's quick to make and delicious. It's essentially a stew with tomatoes and herbs, and at the end you fry some eggs on the surface of the stew. Totally awesome.

http://indirectheat.blogspot.com/2011...

[Roland Parker]

Do you actually have real saffron? It's very unusual for saffron to be sold in large quantities and just about any "saffron" sold in these quantities are safflower, which look like saffron and produce the color saffron does but doesn't have the flavor. If someone brought you the saffron as a gift from a trip overseas, especially from an "authentic" souk/bazaar/marketplace, odds are it's the fake stuff, not real saffron.

I've travelled and shopped widely and I've only ever seen real saffron sold in tiny amounts.

Test the saffron first before you do anything with it. Dilute a few strands in a small amount of warm milk for at least ten minutes. Then taste. Are you getting a saffron flavor? Or just the dye?

Very high quality saffron will dye slowly, so a milk or water test will see the liquid slowly deepen in color, whereas fake saffron or lower grade saffron mixed with fake safflower often dies the liquid immediately.

[flubber2012]

Great tip. My parents brought home a fairly large amount from, I think Spain. I could be fake. I'll test as you recommend. If it's junk, it "solves" my problem.

Many thanks to all the other posters for the great ideas and recipes.

[coll]

I've been wondering since I first saw this: What do you mean by "tiny amounts" or "large amounts"? I buy it by the ounce, when it comes to saffron that's a large quantity I think. Mine is Spanish and usually comes in a tin, with a seal stating so. I'm not an expert, but before I paid close to $100 I researched a bit. Good to know about the dye test, not that I'm going to waste any of mine at this point!

[Roland Parker]

Saffron is usually sold in small containers, usually tin or plastic, approximately the size of a small bar of soap. The container will open to reveal an even smaller plastic bag containing the shreds of saffron.

It's when I see/hear about a bag packed with saffron that I begin to doubt its authenticity. The largest amount of real saffron I've seen in one container for sale was about half a cup's worth of saffron and yes, it was quite expensive. The spice bazaars of the Middle East will feature open baskets filled with mounds of "saffron" that's passed off to unsuspecting tourists as "real" saffron whereas it's merely safflower. Anyone who gives you a plastic sack packed with saffron was duped somewhere and is giving you safflower. Real saffron sells for hundreds and hundreds of dollars per ounce...

[DGresh]

Yeah, some friends brought me a bag of "saffron" that they'd bought somewhere overseas. It was the size of thick paperback book. I never believed it was actually saffron! I recall it didn't have much scent, though it did look like the stuff.

[malabargold]

No rush it keeps fine tightly sealed. I always buy in large quantities - about once every two years.

[Querencia]

Chowhound makes me commit the sin of envy re posts like "I have a big pile of saffron" and "I have 15 pounds of marzipan in my freezer" (that one was yesterday) and my favorite, "I have a huge tree full of giant ripe mangos, oh dear, whatever shall I do".

[coll]

I know what you mean! So funny.

[pine time]

Sin of Envy is alive and well in the Pine household. I'm greedy and pea green with envy.

[Will Owen]

You didn't mention if it was ground or in its original threads. If ground it's probably on its way out or dead; if threads, just keep it well sealed in a cool dark place, and it will last a long, long time. The Christmas after we moved here in 2000, my father-in-law gave me an ounce or so of Spanish saffron, packed in a little zip-lock bag inside of a metal tin. I use maybe five pinches a year, and it's still about as potent as when my now-long-gone FIL gave it to me. It might even outlive me!

As to what I use it for, my favorite thing is a stew of salt or fresh cod with potatoes, tomatoes, onion and olives, cooked in olive oil then with some water and about a cup of white wine with the saffron steeped in it, and a bit of smoked paprika as well. But another of papa's legacies was a big De Buyer paella pan, so I guess that's on the agenda, too …

[CanadaGirl]

I love an Indian yogurt dish with saffron and pistachios. This version looks good: http://saveur.com/article/Recipes/Shr...

I usually use Greek yogurt instead of draining my own.

[shallots]

Do you have Swedish friends?

One of the most appreciated Christmas presents I ever gave was a jar of my home grown Saffron to a friend whose budget was hurting in November. So as soon as my harvest dried I gave it all to her. It meant more to her than to me as it wasn't a part of my heritage.

[Pedr0]

Safransbullar!

http://www.sweden.se/eng/Home/Lifesty...

Ate and made a lot of these around x-mas when I lived in Sweden. So good!

[BananaBirkLarsen]

This makes me think of the Santa Lucia buns I make every Christmas (I'm not Swedish, but I read about these when I was a kid and have been making them ever since). I use the recipe in the Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook, posted here: http://books.google.com/books?id=rolu...

[Caitlin McGrath]

Saffron almond cake: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/almon...

The version of that recipe I used a couple of weeks ago actually called for twice as much (1 tsp.) saffron. Really good cake. The recipe works well baked in a 10-cup bundt pan instead of two 8-inch pans.

[coll]

I am really into bundt cakes lately, and this sounds like a winner! I would call it Orange Almond cake and let them try to guess the secret ingredient.

[Caitlin McGrath]

The chief flavor is definitely saffron, especially if you use the full teaspoon. The almond is in the background. My saffron-loving friends adored it.

[pine time]

Oh, thanks, Caitlin. Must. Make. This.

[ratgirlagogo]

Send some to me:)

[cgarner]

or me! and I'll even invite you over for dinner!

[pine time]

Hey, I had dibs, upthread :)

[rjbh20]

Large quantities of risotto alla Milanese, with the leftovers turned into arancini.

[njmarshall55]

+1 on that one!

[pine time]

Lots and lots of saffron caramels.
Or just mail it to me.

[DGresh]

persian rice with saffron

[rose water]

yep, and persian rice pudding, and persian caramels (check out recipes for sohan asali)

[wyogal]

Paella.
Or, use it to dye eggs, or fabric...

[Pedr0]

Tagine!