Saffron Rice
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Highly prized for centuries and rich in antioxidants, saffron is not your typical spice. It is the dried stigma — or thread — harvested from the Crocus sativus flower, a member of the iris family. Though it can cost ten to twenty dollars per gram, only a few delicate threads are needed to infuse a dish with its unique flavour and luminous golden hue. Saffron has a sweet yet slightly bitter taste and imparts a heavenly glow to any meal it touches.
Recent studies show saffron’s potential mood-enhancing and antidepressant effects. It also carries anti-convulsant, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, and memory-improving properties. Scientists have identified more than 150 volatile and non-volatile compounds in saffron, about fifty of which are now known. Because it contains both water- and fat-soluble compounds, saffron is best prepared with a little fat (like ghee or olive oil) and water to absorb its full spectrum of benefits.
Traditional Wisdom Meets Modern Insight
Cook with saffron. In our fast-paced world, people turn to supplements when they hear something is good for you, however, for regular use best to have herbs and spices in food, not in a pill or capsule. Ayurvedically speaking, saffron supplements over time, as with any supplement, will heat up the liver, so it’s best to enjoy saffron in food rather than in capsule form. Simply add a few pinches when cooking rice, or simmer a cup of whole milk with saffron and sip warm before bed. Whole milk allows the fat to carry saffron’s goodness deep into the cells while the calcium nourishes the bones.
While modern research on saffron continues to unfold, the ancient wisdom remains true: cook with it. As Ayurvedic practitioner Marianne Teitelbaum suggests, saffron in warm milk can even help prevent degenerative conditions like Parkinson’s disease. However, those with high pitta should use it sparingly, as saffron increases internal heat over time.
My Ayurvedic teacher Vaidya Rama Kant Mishra, observed that many of his North American patients experienced pitta imbalances due to overheated livers from poor diet and lifestyle. Because of this, he often recommended gentler methods of herbal delivery — creams, roll-ons, and nectars — to bypass the liver. Similarly, taking saffron or turmeric as long-term supplements can overheat the liver, since it must process everything we ingest.
Time-Tested Culinary Tradition
The bottom line: saffron has been revered in Persian, Arab, Indian, and European cuisines for millennia. Cook with it as our ancestors did. My simple Saffron Rice recipe takes only 20 minutes — and offers the full benefit of saffron’s therapeutic compounds, without the need for supplements.
Ayurvedic Profile of Spices in the Saffron Rice
Cinnamon - warming quality; helps metabolize carbohydrates and sugar
Cloves - warming spice, opens the physical channels, but not aggravate pitta dosha
Saffron - high in antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, anti-convulsant, anti-depressant, anti-tumour
Saffron Rice. Fifty constituents of saffron have been identified in research studies. The carotenoid, crocin gives saffron its bright red colour, picrocrocin imparts its bitter flavour, and safranal its distinct aroma.
Saffron Rice
Yield: 2 - 3 Servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
INGREDIENTS
½ cup basmati rice
1 tsp ghee or olive oil
⅔ cup water
2 pinches of saffron
1 cinnamon stick
4 cloves
2 cardamom pods, crushed
INSTRUCTIONS
Soak basmati rice in water for at least 10 minutes, and rinse well.
Add water and spices, stirring all together.
Turn heat to high, and allow grains to boil for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add ghee or olive oil, then cover with a lid, turn off stove, and cook for 15 minutes.
Fluff up the grains to release steam and salt to taste.
Serve with your choice of protein and vegetables.
Enjoy!
References
Saffron Study https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6266642/
Saffron for Teenage Moodiness? The Evidence is Immature https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/medical-critical-thinking/saffron-teenage-moodiness-evidence-immature
Vaidya R. K. Mishra- Notes from Shaka Vansiya Ayurveda Courses, Practicum, Conferences and Lectures 2003-2015
