Saffron's use as a dye by various cultures, prized as the safe organic dye for clothing & food.

The dried stigmas of Saffron are treasured all over the world as agents used in safe organic dye in both food and clothes. Irrespective of the high cost of saffron, it has been used as a fabric dye especially in India and China. It is an unstable coloring agent in the long run, so eventually the color will fade with regular washing. Saffron imparts a beautiful orange yellow color to the fabric which eventually fades into pale and creamy yellow. Depending on the concentration of the saffron used to dye the fabric, rich shades with red tones are obtainable. Traditionally, the clothes dyed with saffron were worn by noble people especially worn by Buddhist and Hindu monks. In medieval Scotland and Ireland, monks wore linen undershirts dyed with Saffron. To this day Saffron is still used as a heavenly dye and the favored one among spiritual practitioners who study Buddhism.

Saffron renders a garnishing bright yellow color in food. It is widely used in cuisines of Europe, North Africa and Asia. The aroma and taste of saffron give the dish a distinctive flavor. Moroccans use saffron in preparing their dishes which includes kefta (meat balls), mqualli (chicken dish), chelow Kebab, chermoula and mrouzia. Indian sweet dishes such as kulfi, gulab jamun, and saffron lassi are quite famous all over the world for their exquisite taste. These Indian dishes are mostly inspired from Moroccan sweet dishes.

Moroccan cuisine is one of the most favorite in the world. 

Honey Chicken with Saffron recipe

Cooking Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 40 minutes Serves: 4-6 people

Recipe Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

2 Kg chicken, jointed into 8 pieces

1 big sized onion, coarsely chopped

3-4 crushed garlic, cloves

2 1/2 tsp cinnamon, ground

1 1/2 tsp ginger, ground

800 g coarsely chopped tomatoes

300 ml chicken stock or water

1/2 tsp strands saffron

75 ml (5 tbsp) honey

1 tsp orange flower water

30g blanched flaked almonds, toasted

small bunch coriander, roughly chopped

couscous or flat-breads, to serve

You can use regular buns, even slice bread if you don’t find flat breads.

Cooking Method

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy-based pan. Putting in the chicken pieces fry them till golden brown. Now, keep the chicken aside, and cook the onion in the same pan till gets tender and starts to lighten up. Add in the garlic cloves, ginger, cinnamon and cook for a minute. Put in the tomatoes, then mix everything together. Turn off the heat and cook for a further 15 minutes, stirring from time to time.

2. Bring the chicken stock to boil and add 2-3 strands of saffron to it. Now, put it over the vegetables and bring one more boil to the whole stuff. Place the chicken pieces on top, allow the juices to flow from them and put the mixture over the chicken. Let it simmer gently till the time the chicken becomes soft. It will take around 30 minutes for the juices to get absorbed and for the chicken to get tender.

3.After taking out all the chicken pieces, keep them aside and covering them with a lid. Now, bring the juices to a boil and don’t remove till the mixture becomes thick. Keep simmering by adding honey till it becomes thick like a jam.

Now, add the orange flower water. Insert the chicken pieces into the mixture and allow them to absorb the sauce.

4. Remove from heat, serve the chicken pieces and sauce on the flat bread with typical Moroccan garnish of toasted almonds and chopped coriander over the chicken pieces.