Tracing The Origin of Saffron, World’s Most Expensive Spice
Image Credit: Growing and extracting saffron is a labour-extensive craft. (Picture Credit: Pixabay)

I remember, a few days ago, I went to a grocery store and asked for saffron. The man at the counter extended his hands and grabbed a tiny pack of orange thread-like spice that must not be more than 2 grams. When asked about its price, the shopkeeper quoted something around Rs. 240, and I was baffled. Guess what? I raised my eyebrows and modestly said, “Nhi chahiye bhaiya.” Yes, that’s how expensive this crimson spice is. Why? That's because growing and extracting saffron is a labour-extensive craft. Read on to know more.

Kashmir’s Pampore village has the prestige of growing the world’s most sky-high spice, saffron known by the name zafran in Urdu, kungumapoo in Tamil, and kong posh in Kashmir. Pampore is nestled approximately 14 kilometres from Srinagar and is popularly known as the ‘Saffron capital of India.’

Kashmir has the prestige of cultivating the world’s most superior quality of saffron. It is the sweetest, most fragrant, and has thickest strands than its counterparts from other parts of the world. That’s why Kashmiri saffron received the GI tag, which is a prestigious one provided post certifying a product’s origin to protect it from adulteration. So naturally, this helps the local farmers fetch higher prices.

Its cultivation is the primary source of economy in Pampore as over 2000 families are associated with it. Cultivating saffron begins with collecting the delicate saffron flowers and then dividing them into three parts, namely the petals, the red strand, and the yellow strands. Finally, pure saffron is extracted from the red ones after drying them over a charcoal fire. You will be shocked to know that around 150000 blossoms are hand-picked to produce a kilo of this prized spice.

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How Saffron Made Its Way to India?

As far as tracing the origin of saffron and its introduction to Kashmir, legends have many stories. One such tale goes back to the 12th century that says that two Sufi saints presented saffron bulbs to a local chieftain after he cured them of a severe illness. You can find a golden-domed shrine dedicated to these saints in Pampore. Other claims that it was brought to India for trade by the Persians during 500 BC. Iran still produces 90 per cent of the world’s saffron. As per the third legend, Mughals were fond of saffron and thus popularized its use in India. They just loved the fragrance and taste of saffron in royal delicacies like Biryani, Phirni, Sheermal, and Sharbat.

Sounds fascinating? Well, it is!