How to bloom saffron efficiently – from Persian Maman’s kitchen

During a visit to my husband’s family home, where the best quality saffron comes from, Iran, I had the privilege of documenting how Maman prepares her blooming saffron water from her own kitchen. In the instruction below you will see the instruction guide on how to bloom saffron with her simple technique.

Saffron, being a delicacy of Persian cuisine, has been used almost daily in Persian cuisine. Those include mains, soups, desserts, and even tea. Maman, like most Persian mothers, always has a stock of blooming saffron or saffron water for cooking in her fridge.

Why making saffron water efficiently is important?

According to Maman, correctly preparing blooming saffron or saffron water for cooking helps to extract the maximum flavor, aroma and color of the saffron threads. Resulting in concentrated stock.

Adding this saffron water to your cooking ensures that the flavor, aroma, and color spread beautifully throughout your meal.

Additionally, since saffron is known as the most expensive herbs, you might want to get the most out of it-in a cost effective way.

Even in Iran, where saffron is abundant, it is still pricey. So I believe the best tips for blooming saffron is better to learn from the natives who use it almost daily in their home cooking – like my mother-in-law.

What happens when you use saffron strands instead of saffron water? My mistake in handling saffron

Back when I knew nothing about saffron, I used to toss a few strands directly into my cooking. Like how you add thyme to your food, I suppose the same logic applies.

Though you may see this as a shortcut, as I did, it can be wasteful, considering how expensive this spice is. In my experience, adding saffron strands directly to the food results in lesser impact in terms of flavor and aroma.

This often tempted me to add more strands, which not only ended up being a costly mistake but also a technical disaster. Being the nature of saffron threads don’t dissolve, they tend to clump up during cooking, and creating blobs of color. You can probably imagine how inconsistent the flavor was.

How many saffron strands are enough to make blooming saffron?

From my observation seeing Maman & her relatives cooking, you don’t need much saffron in your food unless you fancy a strong taste of the flower. Unlike other herbs, it is less about quantity but rather about technique.

In my household, where I usually cook for 2 people and don’t use it as often as Maman, I would go for a pinch of saffron with a full teacup of ice cubes.

This typically yields about 100ml or 24 tsp of saffron water. Normally for most dishes like this Persian Lentil rice, I use just 1-2 tsp of saffron water. Maman would go for 2-3 tsp for 1 pot of stew.

How long does it take to soak saffron when making blooming saffron?

One important lesson I’ve learned about extracting the best flavor from saffron is not to rush them. This delicate herb needs time to work its magic – I’m talking about high-quality saffron.

Therefore, I suggest to start blooming before you start cooking. Oh it even rhymes! An efficient technique my mother-in-law taught me involves melting ice cubes with ground saffron.

With this method, the ice typically takes about 1 hour to melt at room temperature. This slows the process, allowing the saffron to gradually release and distribute the flavor, aroma & color into the water.

Ratio of saffron and water-ice cube

How different household has their own ratio of saffron and water/ice cubes when making blooming saffron. Most Persian home-cook mothers don’t have the exact number but rather trust their gut since making blooming saffron has become the norm.

The ratio I use in my house, which I have adapted from Maman, is a pinch of saffron and a handful of ice cubes. I have made multiple different dishes with this ratio, and it works perfectly.

Tools needed

To follow the Persian way of blooming saffron efficiently, you need a pestle and mortar or saffron grinder. Grinding saffron before blooming not only maximizes the use of the saffron threads but also allows a more thorough release of flavor and color to the liquid.

Since saffron is the most expensive herb, especially in this inflation period, you want to get the most out of it in the least quantity.

In my kitchen, I am using a mini brass pestle and mortar, like the one in the photo below, specifically for saffron. Previously, I used the wood one, but I found it hard to grind because it is softer and tends to absorb the powder. If you are looking for the mini brass, I found one that closely resembles mine.

Optionally, you can also use stainless steel and marble stone mini pestles and mortars. They are both sturdy for grinding saffron and easy to clean.

The technique on how to make blooming saffron or saffron water.

Step 1 – Add saffron threads to pestle and mortar. Make sure the pestle and mortar are dry to ensure smooth grinding.

Step2 – Grind the saffron with the pestle by pressing it in a circular motion until it turns into a fine powder.

Step 3 – Now, in a glass or jar with ice cubes, sprinkle the saffron powder on top of the cubes and leave it to melt.

Step 4 – When it’s fully melted, you can either use it directly for cooking or store it in a jar with a lid.

When choosing saffron

When buying saffron, make sure you buy from a verified seller. There are many fake saffron in the market nowadays, and I would not buy from a random seller without any brand (unless I know them).

I suggest an Iranian brand, not because I am biased, but because Persian saffron is the best due to the soil conditions and ideal weather for growing saffron flowers. This is one of the trusted and good-quality saffron brands you can buy, sourced from Iran.

Frequently asked questions.

Why bloom saffron with ice?

Blooming saffron in ice cubes allows some time for the ground saffron to release the flavor, aroma, and color to the water slowly and steadily as the ice melts. This way it provides a controlled and gradual release when making concentrated saffron water.

Why make saffron water or bloom saffron in water for cooking?

Blooming saffron in water helps you to get the most out of the herbs. It transfers the flavor, aroma and color uniformly throughout the water resulting in concentrated stock.

When you cook with saffron water instead of tossing the whole saffron threads into the food, you will see better and more even distribution.

On the other hand, saffron threads in foods may result in clumps, uneven color, and inconsistent aroma throughout the foods.

How to bloom saffron without grinding? (When you don’t have pestle and mortar)

If you don’t have pastel and mortar, sprinkle the saffron threads directly into the ice cubes and allow them to melt slowly. You can also use warm water. Do not use boiling hot water, as it can reduce the quality of the saffron in terms of taste and color.

🥣 Did you try this recipe? Let me know your thoughts in the comment below.