The saffron routes are ancient and date back in India around 1500 AD. The saffron spread from India to the ancient Ottoman Empire that is today called Turkey. The Ottomans were responsible for the transference of the saffron to Egypt as at this time the Egyptians were under Ottoman rule with saffron. The spices were called the "espice azafran" in Egypt and became part of everyday culture around all of the Arab world. Theis expensive cooking ingredient and dye has spread literally Worldwide now and is enjoyed by millions of people who cook with cheapest price per gram saffron and use it to dye things like clothes and even their own hair.
In the Arabic world saffron uses include in cooking plus also in saffron health and medicinal attributes where saffron medicine is practiced every day by people and it has become an intrinsic part of the everyday culture of the people. The spice filaments when soaked in water emit the powerful red color and this is what is used to color the saffron rice in India and Morocco where the wide use of the product in their cooking is famous and their cuisine is appreciated by millions of people from other countries.
The caviar market in the UK has been very resilient during the economic downturn and in fact the market has increased by 5% in 2010. Some say it is because the rich are less effected by the crisis than the middle and lower classes. There is indeed much truth in this and people with bags of money are not really going to change their lifestyles that significantly even in a crisis saffron spice online at lowest prices. In fact very often the rich use a crisis to capitalize on and increase their wealth by buying up items cheaper from people who are in financial dire straights. When analyzing the market in 2010 the figures do not lie, there has indeed been an increase in consumption. The biggest sonsumption of course takes place at Christmas when everyone is celebrating the season and there are more parties where caviar is eaten.
Saffron brands and saffron cooking e is actually something of a tradition in itself and there you can find a list of the finest saffron brands online. There are many different types and one of the most famous brands on the market today is by and Iranian manufacturer called Saharkhiz saffron that makes a wonderful high class buy saffron online shops with grade 1 sargol all red color. When looking to buy saffron it is advisable to always just go for it and get the very best as buying cheap saffron is a false economy in reality you are cheating yourself as it is weaker less potent saffron you will receive at a lower price and you will need to use more of it to get the very same effect that just a mere % of the proper sargol all red powerful saffron would take, so when cooking your dish get the best, treat yourself as after all you only live once, well last time i checked this was the case ! So for your paella or Persian rice pilaf use Saharkhiz saffron filaments or powder, they are both made from sargol all red tips, so no difference in quality, simply what you prefer as a personal choice, personally i like both, filaments are also good for finishing a sprinkle of visual decadence to your final dish.
