Precious spice is chef's gold

Photo: Marion van Dijk Nelson Mail

Sensations of summer always evoke in me the smell of saffron cooking on the beaches of the Spanish island of Formentera. A giant pan atop a gas ring on a rickety table, under cover of a makeshift tent roof; a chef preparing shellfish fresh from the fishing boats moored offshore; onion and garlic frying, and that distinctive earth-spice smell of saffron mixed with rice to make the quintessentially Spanish dish, paella.

Saffron is a spice associated with the cooking of not only Spain but also North Africa, Greece, the Middle East and India, yet it grows beautifully just down the road in Brightwater. A native of the Mediterranean, it thrives in our version of a Mediterranean climate.

Annemarie Moynihan has 500 square metres planted in this exotic spice, claimed to be the most expensive in the world. The crocus corm produces the flower that contains the threads (stigmas) that are saffron, and it grows very well here. It loves a little cold and frost in winter, and produces blue flowers in autumn, which must be harvested as soon as they bloom. The season is a short eight weeks, and Annemarie harvests about 500 grams of saffron.


Photo: Rob Corlett

The whole flower head is harvested and then the threads extracted and dried. It takes about 100 flowers to make one gram of saffron, and Annemarie sells each gram for $20, either through local markets or over the web at www.organicsaffron.co.nz.
She also supplies restaurants and Baku in Richmond.

The top of the south is the home of another enterprising saffron operation, the Saffron Room. Dave Pigou grows saffron in Marlborough on his vineyard and is in partnership with Nelsonian Diana Roper, a food scientist. They are developing value-added products such as Saffience, a water-soluble saffron extract. This bright red liquid takes the worry out of soaking saffron and can be added directly to dishes without any fuss or bother. The resulting colour in the food is an intense yellow that most other saffron does not provide so richly.

The Saffron Room, in Nelson's Harley St, is a fascinating laboratory using a freeze-drying method to initially treat the saffron before it is converted to an extract using pressurised carbon dioxide. You can buy Saffience from the shop, or go to the website for online purchases and more information about their excellent product (www.thesaffronroom.co.nz).


Photo: Rob Corlett

Saffron can also be bought in most major supermarkets, in very small packages produced by Masterfoods, but it does not compare with the products of either of our local producers. Sometimes saffron powder is sold, but beware of this, as it is impossible to establish the quality of the product in this form.

Saffron is a fantastic culinary ingredient and combines brilliantly with rice, potatoes, fish and chicken, as well as being an excellent ingredient for cakes, desserts, biscuits and jams.Its strong earth-spice flavour is not spicy hot but sharp and rich, combining very well with orange, rosemary and thyme, as well as chilli and other aromatic spices such as cinnamon and cumin. It imparts a beautiful orange-yellow colour to rice, potatoes, chicken and fish.

The key to using saffron is to rehydrate it in a small amount of hot liquid for a period of time before use - an hour is ideal but 10 minutes will suffice. The liquid turns a brilliant orange-yellow and the threads swell.

The threads can also be lightly toasted before soaking to enhance the flavour. Some people advocate pounding the saffron before soaking to increase the intensity of the colour and flavour. A little saffron goes a long way - one teaspoon soaked in three teaspoons of hot water will flavour a dish for six to eight people very well. If using Saffience, three teaspoons is equivalent to 10 threads of saffron. Saffron should be stored in a cool, dark place. It won't spoil but loses flavour and intensity over time, as any herb or spice does.

The four recipes that follow demonstrate great uses of saffron right now, in the height of summer.

Seafood paella
Photo:Marion van Dijk Nelson Mail

This recipe is for seafood only, but paella is traditionally also served with both chicken and sausages.

If you wish to include them, delete the "other seafood" and use 250g of chorizo sausage and 250g of chicken (either breast or wings). They should be mostly cooked before you add the rice to the mixture. Alternatively, cook them in another pan and add them to the mixture at the end.

500g raw shrimp or prawns, cleaned and shelled (use the shells to make a stock)
250g scallops
500g other fish or seafood could be mussels or a firm fish like monkfish
3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion
5 cloves garlic
1 large red pepper
400g can of tomatoes or the same of fresh tomatoes (use the juice of the canned tomatoes with the shrimp stock)
2 cups of short grain rice (use arborio or a similar rice; bomba paella rice is also available in some supermarkets)
2 tsp saffron
1 cup peas
Salt and pepper to taste
1 medium chilli (it should be moderate to hot)
lots of Italian parsley or coriander

First, make the stock by combining the shrimp shells and 4-5 cups of water. Add a handful of fresh thyme and chives. Simmer for 30 minutes. Sieve and discard the shells. You should have 3-4 cups of liquid.

In a paella pan or a large frying pan, heat the oil and saute the sliced onion, garlic, chilli and red pepper. Add the tomatoes and their juice, half a cup of shrimp stock and salt. Heat to boiling, then reduce the heat and cook for 15 minutes.

Stir in the rice and saffron and the remaining stock. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the rice is done. Add shrimp and scallops and peas and other seafood to the mixture and cook through, about another eight minutes.

Summer vegetables with saffron and parsley pesto with chilli

500g new potatoes such as jersey bennes or agria
1 large eggplant
4 courgettes
1 large red onion
6 tomatoes
3 cloves garlic
1 fennel bulb
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp oregano
1 tsp saffron
juice of an orange
1 cup white wine
vegetable stock to just cover the vegetables
salt and pepper to taste
4 tbsp olive oil

Slice all the vegetables and saute the onions, garlic and fennel bulb in olive oil.

Add the fennel seeds and oregano, then add the other vegetables and orange juice, saffron, wine and stock. Gently simmer until tender.

Serve with a cos lettuce salad and a pesto made with Italian parsley and chilli.

Parsley pesto: In a food processor, combine four cups of parsley with two cups of fresh basil. Add 1/2 cup of grated parmesan, 1/2 cup of toasted pine nuts, salt and pepper, a whole chilli (should be hot) and olive oil to make a medium-thick paste.