# ISO saffron suggestions (rice?)



## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 15, 2012)

I had meant to try saffron in my cooking a couple years ago, but somehow I got sidetracked. I have 0.02 oz. Trader Joe's Spanish saffron (threads). I'm worried about that all spices gradually use their potency and flavor with time, and I think I should use my saffron ASAP.

Can anybody give me some simple starter recipes using saffron? Maybe just plain saffron rice? Or maybe a bit more complex than that, but I'll prefer a recipe that doesn't require a lot of buying ingredients. I want to start out simple.

Your ideas? TIA


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## merstar (Feb 15, 2012)

It's great in rice or couscous - the best way to use it is to soak it in hot water or broth first, then use that as part of your liquid measurement.

Saffron is also great in seafood and chicken recipes, paella, etc. I use it when making steamed mussels with butter, shallots, garlic, and dry white wine.


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## GLC (Feb 15, 2012)

It's at its best in paella, especially if you use the right rice. Bomba is probably best. But other medium grain rices work, like arborio that's easier to find. . 

A paella doesn't take many ingredients. You've probably already got most of it, paprika, garlic and tomatoes. Sort of a backward rissoto. Cook the garlic, tomato, whatever greens you want, and shrimp of chicken with paprika and saffron to make a stock and reduce it to concentrate the flavor, and then add the rice and simmer untouched and uncovered until all the free stock is absorbed. That absorption is what proper paella rices are good at. (Over an open wood fire, is nice too. Gives it a touch of smoke.) You cook it over a burner or fire, because you want the important crispy layer on the bottom. Nothing fancy. The dish began as a meal to fix in the field with whatever small meat wasn't fast enough to escape.


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## Andy M. (Feb 15, 2012)

Risotto Milanese.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 15, 2012)

I have my own paella recipe that used to be great except that it relied on a package rice ingredient, Uncle Ben's brown rice. I've never been able to reproduce the recipe since UB terminated the product, although my many guests said they loved it. It didn't use saffron. (That's one reason I hate brand ingredients. If they withdraw it then your recipe is killed.)

Is there just a simple saffron rice recipe that anybody could recommend? That might be a good starting point for me to appreciate saffron without complicating and confounding ingredients.


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## Andy M. (Feb 15, 2012)

*Parmesan & Saffron Risotto*​ 
​6-8 C             Chicken Stock  ​ 4 Tb             Butter, divided
 1½ C             Onion - minced
 1½ C             Arborio Rice
 ½ C             White Wine
 ½ tsp             Saffron Threads
 1 C             Parmesan Cheese

 Heat the stock to a simmer and maintain at that temperature during the cooking process.

 In a saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter and sweat the onions for about 10 minutes over low heat.

 Add the rice and stir to coat the rice with the melted butter.  Cook for a few minutes.

 Add the wine and reduce until almost dry.

 Add a cup of the stock and stir frequently while boiling gently.  

 When the stock is almost absorbed, add another half cup and continue to cook, stirring frequently.  

 Continue adding the stock a half-cup at a time and cooking for about 20 to 25 minutes.

 In the last 10 minutes, add the saffron and stir in.

 When the rice is tender and creamy, add 2T of butter and the cheese.  

 Mix in and serve.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 16, 2012)

Thanks Andy, that's getting close. I have all that stuff except the specific rice. Does it require Arborio or can I substitute another rice? I favor long grain rice...

I had thought you should soak your saffron in water or some other liquid for use...

Is there a basic saffron rice or is your suggested recipe it?


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## buckytom (Feb 16, 2012)

since saffron id delicate as well as expensive, using it in simple dishes that have other delicate ingredients is the way to go.

besides paella, saffron scalliops comes to mind. or saffron scrambled eggs.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 16, 2012)

Yeah but I already bought it and I'm worrying that it will lose its taste before I use it. Price really isn't that important now, and TJ's has good prices anyway. Probably didn't cost over $20-$30... (That's a joke, it was probably about $4-$5. Looks like enough for about 3-5 dishes.)

I'm tempted to try Andy's recipe. I could add shrimp to that and make it a one dish recipe, right? Maybe throw in some peas and carrots? Carrots sooner and peas towards the end maybe? Saute the shrimp and set aside before starting the risotto, then return them to the dish midway?


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## buckytom (Feb 16, 2012)

lol, if it already lost it's taste, then it wouldn't be any better in any recipe. 

i've gotta stop trying to be helpful and just be a wise ass.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 16, 2012)

BT at least I hope you aren't in charge of a nuclear plant.

I haven't had much experience with risotto. My one recent experience at a restaurant indicated that they didn't know how to cook it, since it was grainy and hard, much harder than rice.

I've been meaning to explore making risotto. I think I could probably make Andy's recipe particularly if I added some shrimp and vegetables. That would work, right?

I guess Arborio is short grain rice. I've always liked long grain better but I guess I better look for some Arborio.

Somebody please tell me if my recipe sounds workable regarding sauteing the shrimp, set aside, then follow Andy's recipe and add the shrimp mid way, maybe carrots sooner and peas later. Or would that be an abomination?


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## Addie (Feb 16, 2012)

Gourmet Greg said:


> BT at least I hope you aren't in charge of a nuclear plant.
> 
> I haven't had much experience with risotto. My one recent experience at a restaurant indicated that they didn't know how to cook it, since it was grainy and hard, much harder than rice.
> 
> ...


 
I would add the shrimp towards the end of the cooking. Cooking them first, removing them and later putting them back in will just expose them to more heat. And it is the extra unneeded heat that makes them tough. Cook them once at the end. Anytime I have seen paella made on TV, seafood is always added at the end.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Feb 16, 2012)

GG Valencia paella is my fav Freelance Spain -  "Paella Where It Grows" by Janet Mendel


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## Claire (Feb 16, 2012)

Andy's recipe is pretty much how I would do it.  I couldn't get arborio rice when I first moved here, eventually found Calrose, which was the short grain rice of choice when I lived in Hawaii.  I cannot emphasize enough his instruction on making sure your stock/broth is kept hot through the process.  

Long-grain rice, to me, is meant to be fluffy.  This is not a fluffy dish, it is a creamy one.  If you try to use long-grain to make risotto, chanced are pretty good you'll wind up with rice mush.  It isn't sturdy enough to get that creamy outer layer, firm inner layer.


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## justplainbill (Feb 16, 2012)

I like the soccarat from rice made with Goya's Valencia medium grain rice.


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## Andy M. (Feb 16, 2012)

GG, risotto requires a short grain rice to make the creamy 'sauce'.  If not arborio, carnaroli.

If you're going to add shrimp, I'd make the risotto and add the cooked shrimp on top when you serve it.  If any veggies are cooked, just stir them in at the end.


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## FrankZ (Feb 16, 2012)

And you can get the arborio at Trader Joe.


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## Steve Kroll (Feb 16, 2012)

Gourmet Greg said:


> I guess Arborio is short grain rice. I've always liked long grain better but I guess I better look for some Arborio


The hallmark of good Risotto is not only creaminess, but texture that has a little bit of an _al dente_ byte. In other words, it shouldn't be mush. The reason Arborio is used for Risotto is because it has an unusually high starch content, which is what gives the dish its creaminess. But it also has a hard center that helps keep it from turning to goo. You can substitute any short or medium grain rice, and get decent results, but it won't be exactly the same. Sushi rice isn't a bad substitute, either. I wouldn't use long grain, though. It will turn to mush and never develop the creamy characteristic.

I've had a lot of bad restaurant Risotto. I think some of that comes from the fact that, unless they have some knowledge of Italian cuisine, many chefs just don't understand what defines good Risotto, that is, the combined creamy and al dente qualities. It also doesn't help that restaurants often leave food sitting under a heat lamp. Risotto must be served as soon as it comes out of the pan, or it'll quickly turn into a semi-solid mass on the plate.

Risotto has a reputation for being difficult to make, but really isn't if you start with the right ingredients and follow the technique in Andy's recipe above.

By the way, Goya makes an Arborio rice that I see in grocery stores a lot. It's not always in the rice section, though. Sometimes you'll find it in the section of the store where they sell packaged side dishes.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 16, 2012)

I think the restaurant I had risotto at didn't know you need to keep stirring it. I think they just let it sit on the burner for periods, although I did not watch them cook it. Lots of the grains were insufficiently cooked and had a crunchy texture.


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## GLC (Feb 16, 2012)

Gourmet Greg said:


> I have my own paella recipe that used to be great except that it relied on a package rice ingredient, Uncle Ben's brown rice. I've never been able to reproduce the recipe since UB terminated the product, although my many guests said they loved it.



Did they really? It's not on their web site, but it shows up on Costco's web site in 25 pound bags. 

Now that's an odd thing. American's never seem to have gotten very enthusiastic about parboiled rice, although parboiling is done while the rice is whole (brown) and locks in nearly the same nutrients as whole brown rice, albeit with zero fiber once it's milled to white. 

I guess that for consumers, parboiling rice and leaving it whole, brown that is, wasn't much a promotable product. Brown rice is better nutriently. Parboiled white rice is nearly as good nutriently. So how do you hype parboiled brown rice? It does cook quicker than regular brown rice. I guess that wasn't enough, and they wanted to promote brown Ready Rice. 

But I suspect it still appears, as apparently at Costco, in institutional bags, because parboiled rice generally says firmer, which is nice for institutional situation where it sits hot for a long time and probably why it appeared in a rissoto recipe. It would hold up better, getting less mushy. But I would think parboiled white, plain Uncle Ben's would suffice, too. Or you can eat a LOT of brown rice. In fact, parboiled rice is the recommended alternative in paella when short grain can't be had. It's much more popular in Asia, maybe again because it stays firmer, and they more often cook the whole days rice up in the morning.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 16, 2012)

I'm pretty sure it's not the same product. The one I used was MJB Quick Brown Rice. They've changed their products and IIRC they sell some sort of instant stuff. Not the same as what I used to use. My paella recipe was not cooked by the traditional method but rather is started on stove top and then covered and moved to the oven. Regular brown rice comes out under cooked. I've been meaning to rework my recipe but somehow just haven't got around to it. It's one of my recipes from 40 years back and I've been preoccupied with creating new recipes (mostly Asian cuisine) rather than going back over my past. I've seen paella cooked on TV and my recipe was nothing like that so it's definitely not authentic. Nor does it use saffron.

I suspect the MJB Quick Brown Rice must have been parboiled. I think they've taken that further in new products, for home cooks who have no patience. I'm sure everybody has seen the disgusting (to me) boil-in-bag package rice. I don't know where this is all headed unless they're softening us up for the introduction of food replicators.


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## Claire (Feb 16, 2012)

I have used the Goya rice as well with good results.  Don't think I've ever ordered it in a restaurant in the US, so that tells you how long it's been.  When I go to restaurants I tend to stick to things I can't or don't like to make.


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## buckytom (Feb 16, 2012)

Claire said:


> When I go to restaurants I tend to stick to things I can't or don't like to make.



that is my sentiment exactly, and how i order when dining out.


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## Claire (Feb 16, 2012)

I think converted rice is an under-rated product.   I wouldn't use it for risotto, but love it for cold salads, and times when I want the rice to really have separate grains.  People mistake it for instant rice (aka, Minute Rice) which it is not.  It actually takes as long, if not longer, than some regular white rice (don't think I've ever bought the brown)(although it is not as white as some white rice) to cook.  I have a few food history books hanging around here, but it seems that par-boiling was started in attempt to keep nutrition in the rice kernels over longer storage/transportation times.  Maybe WWI?  Next time I go upstairs I'll look.


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## Claire (Feb 16, 2012)

buckytom said:


> that is my sentiment exactly, and how i order when dining out.



I have had friends over the years who don't like to eat out.  I love to.  But, like you, I order based on things I can't get or don't want to cook at home.  Complicated sauces, many Asian/Indian dishes.  Steaks sometimes just taste better in a restaurant.  Anything deep fried, since I hate doing that.  I don't have an exhaust fan in my kitchen, so some broiled meats don't get done in the winter.  So I eat out!  I've made sushi a few times before (and, yes, even have the correct knife and bamboo mat, etc.) but, really, Michael does it better AND has better access to fresher seafood than I do (I think he drives to Chicago every day!  Not gonna happen in my life, that's a 7 hour round trip, assuming O'Hare rather than Midway!).


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## GLC (Feb 16, 2012)

Greg, look at the Costco product. It's labelled parboiled. I have to think that's the Uncle Ben's "quick" rice, since it will cook faster than plain brown rice. 
Costco Business Delivery - Uncle Ben's Wholegrain Brown Rice 25 lbs


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## Greg Who Cooks (Feb 16, 2012)

Thanks GLC. I'll have to think about it since 25 pounds of rice might last this retired single guy longer than his life expectancy...

This Paella recipe was one of my best TNT recipes and I hope one day to resurrect it. If I can't find a MJB Quick Brown Rice replacement then maybe I'll have to modify the technique to arrive at the perfect intersection of the dish being complete at the same time as the rice is the most tender and succulent.

I'll admit to buying Thai jasmine rice in 5# bags, but I eat a lot of white rice. I like Lundberg's Jubilee (brown/wild rice mix) for my ordinary brown rice but it would never work in my Paella recipe.

I can always invent a new Paella recipe. There's a million good ones.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Feb 25, 2012)

Penzey's Spices has a recipe for a Honey and Saffron Cake: Honey and Saffron Cake - Recipes at Penzeys Spices


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## Addie (Feb 25, 2012)

Gourmet Greg said:


> BT at least I hope you aren't in charge of a nuclear plant.
> 
> I haven't had much experience with risotto. My one recent experience at a restaurant indicated that they didn't know how to cook it, since it was grainy and hard, much harder than rice.
> 
> ...


 
When risotto is cooked right, it is very creamy. And the nice think is when it is all cooked, you can add anything you wish to.


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## Addie (Feb 25, 2012)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Penzey's Spices has a recipe for a Honey and Saffron Cake: Honey and Saffron Cake - Recipes at Penzeys Spices


 
Where is says that Shareen uses a mild flavored honey, orange flavored would be great in that cake.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Feb 25, 2012)

Addie said:


> Where is says that Shareen uses a mild flavored honey, orange flavored would be great in that cake.



I'm still writing up my order from the catalog...yes, orange honey would really be good.


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## Addie (Feb 25, 2012)

We have a Penzy's here in Massachusetts. Not to far from where I live. Great store. I love to go in there. It smells so good.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Jul 24, 2012)

I was about to post this topic again until I remembered that I already posted it. I'm still at the same point, I have this saffron that I'd like to use but I haven't found a simple recipe that I could "trial" it out...

I bought the saffron in better times, when I had a complete kitchen. My cooking facilities are limited at present. I want to try this saffron before it gets stale, and I want to get a familiarity with its taste before then.



buckytom said:


> besides paella, saffron scalliops comes to mind. or saffron scrambled eggs.



How do you make your saffron scrambled eggs? I cook eggs almost every day. Can I serve that in a flour tortilla?


Can anybody give me a minimalist saffron rice recipe? Ideally the recipe would have saffron, rice, and as few additional ingredients as necessary. I have both brown rice (40 minute stuff) and white rice (traditional 20 minute stuff, and jasmine rice probably 17 minute stuff). I'd rather use the jasmine rice if there's a compatible saffron recipe what wouldn't exclude that.


Or maybe a saffron chicken recipe, perhaps one I can bake or braise?


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