Topic: saffron in pilau rice

[spiceyokooko]

I knew I was right in that this was a robbery, I just didn't supply the right measurements!

That's more like it! 0.5g for 6 euro is more Schwartz's style. They're not the cheapest by any means.

Now you know why I pay 10 euro for 5 grams of La Mancha Spanish saffron.

[RubyDoo]

I love saffron rice but it is totally wasted with a curry imho. Far too delicate when matched with a robust spicey and hottish concoction.

[spiceyokooko]

Far too delicate when matched with a robust spicey and hottish concoction.

With some of the hotter dishes I would tend to agree but I still think Saffron flavoured rice adds something extra when eaten with milder dishes such as Korma, Tikka Masala, Passanda, Ceylon etc., it seems to work very well with those milder dishes.

I must confess I love saffron flavoured rice and cook it as my standard pilau, it has a lovely flavour and aroma and as my main dishes are not fiercely hot at around medium it works well with them.

[RubyDoo]

Far too delicate when matched with a robust spicey and hottish concoction.

With some of the hotter dishes I would tend to agree but I still think Saffron flavoured rice adds something extra when eaten with milder dishes such as Korma, Tikka Masala, Passanda, Ceylon etc., it seems to work very well with those milder dishes.

I must confess I love saffron flavoured rice and cook it as my standard pilau, it has a lovely flavour and aroma and as my main dishes are not fiercely hot at around medium it works well with them.

Agreed apart from the Ceylon does not sit in the same curry 'sphere' as the others heat wise. Well, not in this house.

[goncalo]

Sadly, it appears the odds are against me. I don't drink milk normally, so I used some milk from my girlfriend without checking the  date and it was off by 2 days.... so had to redo it all over. Thankfully I only use a pinch out of the 2 pinches of saffron I just got. I like how cooking rice in a pressure cooker is very quick, although, it requires the extra step of reheating it in the microwave to finish the cooking (otherwise it's still edible, but al dente.)

Something I've been noticing lately is the lack of intense aromas like the TA, I am not sure it's down to my whole spices or anything, but I don't seem to get the smell as much as I used to get in the beginning. I find the cardamoms don't smell as much as they used to, so I do know I need to replace these. The bay leaves, fennel, cassia are new. The cloves date from around october last year but when I open the little jar, I still get a good intense smell out of.

[RubyDoo]

Sadly, it appears the odds are against me. I don't drink milk normally, so I used some milk from my girlfriend without checking the  date and it was off by 2 days.... so had to redo it all over. Thankfully I only use a pinch out of the 2 pinches of saffron I just got. I like how cooking rice in a pressure cooker is very quick, although, it requires the extra step of reheating it in the microwave to finish the cooking (otherwise it's still edible, but al dente.)

Something I've been noticing lately is the lack of intense aromas like the TA, I am not sure it's down to my whole spices or anything, but I don't seem to get the smell as much as I used to get in the beginning. I find the cardamoms don't smell as much as they used to, so I do know I need to replace these. The bay leaves, fennel, cassia are new. The cloves date from around october last year but when I open the little jar, I still get a good intense smell out of.

Now that is weird.. I do my rice in the pressure cooker all the time but it is perfectly cooked when it comes out and no micro needed. That said, it is a tad better when left to go cold and then reheated from cold in the micro if that is what you mean. I also am finding the opposite in that my pilau is too densely flavoured sometimes and I am looking to cut back on some of the spices etc. i still use C2g method but aopt some of Phil's spicing which I think I ay be overdoing.

[chonk]

6? for 0,5 g is very pricey. You normally pay that for world-class saffron, the really good stuff. I'm a little bit sceptical about spanish saffron too, because it's basically the same thing as with Darjeeling tea - the farmers yield a specific amount per year, but when the product hits the global markets, the number got mysteriously multiplied by x. (insert random, high number ;P) But this is true for almost any saffron, no matter where it comes from. Anyway, I would avoid powdered products, and always check the smell. Some people use coloured corn fibres and stuff like that.

How old are these cardamom pods, goncalo? Always felt that cardamom keeps it aroma quite a while, but you never know for sure, how long it lay at the suppliers to begin with. Check their seeds. Fresh cardamom has really dark, often quite sticky seeds. Older cardamom seeds are more brownish and dry, at least from my experience (:

Greetings!
 

[spiceyokooko]

6? for 0,5 g is very pricey. You normally pay that for world-class saffron, the really good stuff. I'm a little bit sceptical about spanish saffron too, because it's basically the same thing as with Darjeeling tea - the farmers yield a specific amount per year, but when the product hits the global markets, the number got mysteriously multiplied by x.

It is quite expensive - but that's Schwartz for you!

I agree you have to be very careful with Saffron as there's a lot of fake or inferior rubbish on the market. The Spanish saffron I buy from the Spanish market is produced locally, is a good price and good quality. It's not as good as genuine Kashmiri Saffron, but that's the one you have to be particularly careful with due to the counterfeiting and frequently substituted inferior product. I'm happy sticking with the Spanish variety I get as it's a known quantity to me.

[spiceyokooko]

Something I've been noticing lately is the lack of intense aromas like the TA, I am not sure it's down to my whole spices or anything, but I don't seem to get the smell as much as I used to get in the beginning. I find the cardamoms don't smell as much as they used to, so I do know I need to replace these. The bay leaves, fennel, cassia are new. The cloves date from around october last year but when I open the little jar, I still get a good intense smell out of.

Hmm...

Do you give the cardamons a good tap to crack the shell? You ideally need a little crack in the shell to let the flavour out. Do you fry these first? Because that's an important step in getting the flavour to infuse. You should stir fry all your whole spices first in ghee or butter to release the essential oils before you add the rice.

You'd have to go through your recipe and cooking technique to see if there's anything there that's not quite right.

[chonk]

Hi spicey! (:

I agree you have to be very careful with Saffron as there's a lot of fake or inferior rubbish on the market. The Spanish saffron I buy from the Spanish market is produced locally, is a good price and good quality. It's not as good as genuine Kashmiri Saffron, but that's the one you have to be particularly careful with due to the counterfeiting and frequently substituted inferior product. I'm happy sticking with the Spanish variety I get as it's a known quantity to me.

Didn't want to badmouth spanish saffron, sorry if it sounded that way (: They produce really great local saffron there, just read recently that most of what is called spanish saffron is (like most of the saffron you get) the iranian one, that gets the "Made in Spain" label because it's packed up there, and that many, many genuine farmers are really angry about that. Glad that you have a good source! (: Heard that the kashmiri saffron is named the best in the world, but I believe most of it stays there, too ;O