Topic: saffron in pilau rice

[goncalo]

I managed to find some saffron in a local store in one of those schwartz type mini jars with 5g of saffron threads at 6euro I still got it just to see what's so special about it and thought I'd use it in some pilau rice. My question is, how much would you use for a 3 mug of basmati rice?

is 5g too little or too much?

[Peripatetic Phil]

is 5g too little or too much?

Definitely not too little :  it may well be too much, depending on whether you are aiming for just a hint of saffron in the finished dish or a full-blown paella flavour.  As regards how best to persuade it to give up its flavour and colour, I have found that very gentle roasting followed by grinding (in an impermeable mortar, using an impermeable pestle) works best.  Milk, often recommended, is nowhere so successful, in my experience.  The great benefit of grinding in an impermeable mortar and pestle (e.g., marble) is that you can then wash out every last trace into the dish, which at EUR 6-00 for 5gm is well worth doing !

** Phil.

[spiceyokooko]

My question is, how much would you use for a 3 mug of basmati rice? is 5g too little or too much?

Far too much, you only need half a dozen or so strands, a small pinch.

There's a number of different ways you can use saffron - as strands, ground or soaked in milk. You can add strands directly to your rice just before adding liquid, you can grind them in a pestle and mortar and just use the powder and add this before the liquid or soak them in a couple of tsp's of warm milk and sprinkle this over the rice at the end of cooking. I usually take my rice off the heat and let it rest for 15 minutes or so and it's at that point I would sprinkle the saffron milk over the rice, just as I take it off the heat and let it infuse for 15 minutes. This gives the rice a nice natural mottled yellow and white colouring.

I get my Saffron in Spain from the local market for 10 euro for 5g so, 6 euro for 5 grams from Schwartz is pretty good going. I'd check to make sure it is 5g, as I don't recall Schwartz doing 5g jars of Saffron, they're more like 2g.

[goncalo]

I don't have a pestle and mortar, so I'll stick to using milk as it seems to be quite common. Wow, I had no idea it was that "cheap"...

I was thinking about throwing a few threads into a glass full of hot milk, which is what I seem to recall watching in a video, but you recommend only a few tsps?

[Malc.]

I normally soak a few strands in half a cup of hot water for 10-15mins, then use the liquid accordingly. If you simply want a yellow coloured rice grain, then add the strands direct to a pan of water for 10 mins then bring to the boil, then add your rice and cook.

[goncalo]

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

[goncalo]

I normally soak a few strands in half a cup of hot water for 10-15mins, then use the liquid accordingly. If you simply want a yellow coloured rice grain, then add the strands direct to a pan of water for 10 mins then bring to the boil, then add your rice and cook.

Thanks for the tip Axe. I'm planning on trying pressure cooking the rice. Any ideas whether throwing the threads in with the rice could cause any side effects (e.g burning, etc)?

[Malc.]

I've never used a pressure cooker and not sure if I would choose to cook rice in one either, But to avoid burning, i'd suggest soaking in a little hot water and pouring over the top of the rice.

[RubyDoo]

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

Hahaha.  ;D ooops.

[spiceyokooko]

I was thinking about throwing a few threads into a glass full of hot milk, which is what I seem to recall watching in a video, but you recommend only a few tsps?

Well it ultimately depends on what you're trying to achieve really. If you've cooked the rice already and letting it stand when you add the saffron infused milk, you don't really want to add too much more liquid when most of the liquid has already been cooked off, which is why I suggest just a couple of teaspoons.

It sounds to me your best bet might just be to add the saffron strands after you've stir fried the rice in butter/ghee and just before you add the liquid, that way you'll get nice even yellow saffron infused rice.

As always - experiment and find which way you like the best.