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A degree of uncertainty surrounds the origin of the English word "saffron". It might stem from the 12th-century Old French term safran, which comes from the Latin word safranum, from the Persian (زعفران, za'farān), [10] from the Persian word zarparān (زرپران) meaning "gold strung" (implying either the golden stamens of the flower or the golden colour it creates when used as flavour).
An origin in Western or Central Asia, although often suspected, has been disproved by botanical research. [24] Minoan depictions of saffron are now considered to be Crocus cartwrightianus. [25] Saffron played a significant role in the Greco-Roman pre-classical period bracketed by the 8th century BC and the 3rd century AD. [26]
The word ultimately traces back to the Sanskrit kunkumam (कुङ्कुमं) for "saffron". The English name is a learned 16th-century adoption from the Latin safranum, but Old English already had croh for saffron, introduced by the Romans. [47] [79] [80]
Saffron's usual substitutes in food—turmeric and safflower, among others—yield a garishly bright yellow that could hardly be confused with that of saffron. Saffron's main colourant is the carotenoid crocin; it has been discovered in the less tediously harvested—and hence less costly—gardenia fruit. Research in China is ongoing. [17]
The spice saffron has been considered one of the most expensive spices in the course of human history, one of its many primary uses come from the oil extracted from the plant which is a necessary ingredient in many perfumes. [4]
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Crocus sativus, commonly known as saffron crocus or autumn crocus, [2] is a species of flowering plant in the iris family Iridaceae. A cormous autumn-flowering cultivated perennial , unknown in the wild, [ 2 ] it is best known for the culinary use of its floral stigmas as the spice saffron .
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