Saffron

WHERE CAN I BUY SAFFRON? IS IT AVAILABLE IN SUPERMARKETS?

I found saffron at my local kroger, so I'm sure it's a spice you can get at other larger grocery stores. It is expensive though! It was eighteen dollars for one sprig! I didn't have the money to get it at the time. I have never used saffron in any of my dishes, so I'm not sure just how far one little sprig of it will go. Anyone else know?

i got mine at a atlantic superstore i was like YAY as it wasn't located at my local sobeys it was 8 dollars just for like... a lil over a teaspoon

I was very excited to find inexpensive saffron in a little shop in Turkey when I was there last week. I got a whole packet of it (10 grams) for about $3.50 (4 Turkish lira). Now I'm excited to try cooking with it.

That's why I like living abroad. Over and over from India to Turkey to Mexico I've found saffron (Spanish and other varieties) for pennies. I just picked up four tablespoons for the equivalent of 50 cents US. Sorry to brag but sometimes I just have to let someone know some of the positives of living outside the US.

Yes, you can find it in stores like Wal-Mart.

You can order powdered saffron from J Viviano and sons On the Hill 314-771-5476 This comes in a small red plastic capsule and is just a pinch, but this is enough for 1 cup uncooked rice the way that my Milanese Grandmother taught me to make it.

What about growing the crocus flower? It can't be that simple, can it???

hi if you need saffroon i dilivered as soon as posibele in less expensive 4 gr 30$ you can add me in yahoo pink_mohsen@yahoo.com

I bought some saffron crocus bulbs from a bulb catalog and planted them in my herb garden. I get a couple of dozen strands of saffron a year--but it's enough for one recipe of something, and it's fun to say I grew it myself!

I just bought some Spanish Saffron at Trader Joe's Market in Sacramento, California .02 oz (.7g) for $5.95 - in the local Walmart here it was more than 14 dollars for the same amount. Check out www.traderjoes.com

definitely Trader Joe's has the most affordable Saffron I have found!

I found saffron flower (azafran en flor) at a local Mexican market here in Arkansas. It's dried, not fresh, but it was less than $5 for 1/4 oz (7g). Try looking at the little Mexican mercaditos. You would be surprised at the spices they carry that you can't find in regular grocery stores. And they're a lot cheaper!

The inexpensive stuff is not saffron its safflower however it will color your food, just won't give it the wonderful flavor of saffron. I have been cooking with saffron all my life and get it from the middle east. While it is expensive, you don't need very much. Get a mortar and pestle and grind a pinch at a time, then put it in hot water and let it steep. That can then be added to many foods. You can also add it to melted butter and put it over rice etc.

I just found some saffron threads at TJMaxx for 5.50! I have never tried it before, and can't wait to use them. I geuss I got a pretty good deal. I read that powdered saffron is sometimes mixed with filler.

Shocked to find Saffron for only $1.29 (1/4 0z.) quite a bit, in a small mexican/spanish grocer in town. Over by the dried peppers and stuff, Mi Costenita brand. Beats the 10 to 15 bucks at Kroger or Publix.

Hello guys! Greetings from Dallas, where the heat has driven me and my housemates onto the interwebs! I haven't commented on this site before, but reading some of the comments here on one of my favorite spices, wonderful saffron, I felt I really needed to. I hope I can help someone not to make a rather unfunny mistake. The stuff you find in amongst Latin American spices, in 1/4 oz. or 1 oz. packets, labeled "azafran", IS NOT SAFFRON!! Despite what the label says. It is dried safflower. It can color things a similar bright orangey/yellow, but it in no way has the delicious, inimitable flavor and potent scent of real saffron. In my experience, the cheapest places to regularly get real saffron are stores that cater to an Indo/Pakistani customer base. There one can usually find it in one gram and 5 or 10 gram little plastic boxes. Used to cost about 3-4$ for one gram there but in the last 18 mos has gone up to 6-7$ for the 1 gm and about 11-13$ for the 5 or 10 gm boxes, a much better deal. Even the small boxes are a better deal than the amounts you get in bottles in chain supermarkets or wal-mart. BTW, I too have seen REAL saffron, in the little one-third gram or one gm plastic boxes, on sale at TJ Maxx just recently for under 6$, worth a quick look-see. NEVER use or buy powdered saffron; it is commonly adulterated with safflower. Also, any recipe that calls for say, a teaspoon, of saffron threads, start with 1/4 tsp first and soak the threads for at least 20 minutes in some liquid that is to go into the recipe, having warmed the liquid first. In my experience, many recipes call for way more saffron than is actually needed. You may find that if you want the bright color, steeping some safflower separately can give the color and not waste the expensive saffron or its precious flavor. That is what I use safflower for! By the way, IndoPakistani groceries are marvelous places to shop, simply stuffed full of wonderful spices and other ingredients for you to explore! One last note; saffron threads, kept tightly sealed and away from light, will keep their potency for a very long time. Even after you cannot really smell the scent from the threads, you may find soaking in hot water will draw forth their flavor and scent, so don't just throw them away. Crush them a little with your mortar and pestle, and soak them in very hot liquid. It might help to give your dish the seasoning you want and save you from throwing away something that was once worth more than its weight in gold! I hope these thoughts help some of my fellow home chefs to use and enjoy this wonderful spice; good luck with it!

My apologies for the length of the previous post! I DID put in paragraph breaks, I swear! I dont know why they didn't show! :( Sorry!

The Quasardrake post is very helpful to me. I have only recently started to use Saffron, and I needed exactly this kind of advise to help me use it properly. Its equally important to me to know what to avoid when shopping for something expensive, so that I don't waste money on an inferior product that will not give me the results I want. Many thanks for your expert advise.

The Quasardrake post was amazing. I have always wanted and needed information about saffron and you have definitely covered all bases. I will purchase it armed with all the knowledge i needed. Thanks for your infinite wisdom. You are the Bomb

thanks for the help quasardrake, i appreciate your post!!!!!!