Saffron flower (top) showing the stigma and styles with pile of threads (the spice) bottom.
Welcome to the FabulousFusionFood page for the history of the global spread of Saffron as a spice. Here you will how Saffron spread out from its original home in Greece/Persia to be grown and traded around the world. You will also learn why saffron remains the world's most expensive spice by weight.
Please note that this recipe page (and all the other recipe pages on this site) are brought to you in association with the 'One Million People' campaign, which attempts to make available a number of ancient texts (particularly those relating to recipes) available for free on this site.
This page is presented as part of my 'History of the Spice Trade' section of the FabulousFusionFood Recipes site. You can use the table below to navigate the various sections of this history:
Introduction
Fig 1: Saffron threads, the dried stigmas and stamens of the saffron crocus used as a spice.
Saffron remains the world's most expensive spice: it also ranks amongst one of the oldest spices that humans have domesticated and employed as a flavouring. Saffron remains so expensive, as a single saffron crocus flower only produces three saffron threads per flower once a year and they have to be collected by hand. This is why saffron still costs US$5,000 per kg or more; this is why saffron has long been the world's costliest spice by weight.
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in food. Although some doubts remain on its origin, it is believed that saffron originated in Iran. However, Greece and Mesopotamia have also been suggested as the possible region of origin of this plant. Saffron crocus slowly propagated throughout much of Eurasia and was later brought to parts of North Africa, North America, and Oceania.
Saffron's taste and iodoform-like or hay-like fragrance result from the phytochemicals picrocrocin and safranal. It also contains a carotenoid pigment, crocin, which imparts a rich golden-yellow hue to dishes and textiles. Its recorded history is attested in a 7th-century BCE Assyrian botanical treatise, and it has been traded and used for thousands of years. In the 21st century, Iran produces some 90% of the world total for saffron.
Crocus sativus, is an autumn-flowering perennial plant unknown in the wild. It probably descends from the eastern Mediterranean autumn-flowering Crocus cartwrightianus which is also known as "wild saffron" and originated in Crete or Central Asia. C. thomasii and C. pallasii are other possible sources. However, recent research has (reference: Thomas Schmidt, Tony Heitkam, Susan Liedtke, Veit Schubert, Gerhard Menzel. Adding color to a century-old enigma: multi-color chromosome identification unravels the autotriploid nature of saffron (Crocus sativus) as a hybrid of wild Crocus cartwrightianus cytotypes. New Phytologist, 2019; DOI: 10.1111/nph.15715). As a genetically monomorphic clone, it slowly propagated throughout much of Eurasia.
It is a sterile triploid form, which means that three homologous sets of chromosomes make up each specimen's genetic complement; C. sativus bears eight chromosomal bodies per set, making for 24 in total. Being sterile, the purple flowers of C. sativus fail to produce viable seeds; reproduction hinges on human assistance: clusters of corms, underground, bulb-like, starch-storing organs, must be dug up, divided, and replanted. A corm survives for one season, producing via vegetative division up to ten "cormlets" that can grow into new plants in the next season. The compact corms are small, brown globules that can measure as large as 5 cm (2 in) in diameter, have a flat base, and are shrouded in a dense mat of parallel fibres; this coat is referred to as the "corm tunic". Corms also bear vertical fibres, thin and net-like, that grow up to 5cm above the plant's neck
Only in October, after most other flowering plants have released their seeds, do its brilliantly hued flowers develop; they range from a light pastel shade of lilac to a darker and more striated mauve. The flowers possess a sweet, honey-like fragrance. Upon flowering, the plants are 20–30 cm (8–12 in) in height and bear up to four flowers. A three-pronged style 25–30mm in length, emerges from each flower. Each prong terminates with a vivid crimson stigma, which are the distal end of a carpel.
Crocus sativus thrives in the Mediterranean maquis, an ecotype superficially resembling the North American chaparral, and similar climates where hot and dry summer breezes sweep semi-arid lands. It can nonetheless survive cold winters, tolerating frosts as low as −10°C and short periods of snow cover. Some reports suggest saffron can tolerate an air temperature range from −22 to 40°C. Irrigation is required if grown outside of moist environments such as Kashmir, where annual rainfall averages 1,000–1,500 mm (40–60 in); saffron-growing regions in Greece (500 mm or 20 in annually) and Spain (400 mm or 16 in) are far drier than the main cultivating Iranian regions. What makes this possible is the timing of the local wet seasons; generous spring rains and drier summers are optimal. Rain immediately preceding flowering boosts saffron yields; rainy or cold weather during flowering promotes disease and reduces yields. Persistently damp and hot conditions harm the crops, and rabbits, rats, and birds cause damage by digging up corms. Nematodes, leaf rusts, and corm rot pose other threats. Yet, Bacillus subtilis inoculation may provide some benefit to growers by speeding corm growth and increasing stigma biomass yield.
The high retail value of saffron is maintained on world markets because of labour-intensive harvesting methods, which require some 440,000 hand-picked saffron stigmas per kilogram – equivalently, 150,000 crocus flowers per kilogram. Forty hours of labour are needed to pick 150,000 flowers.
One freshly picked crocus flower yields on average 30 mg of fresh saffron or 7 mg dried; roughly 150 flowers yield 1g of dry saffron threads; to produce 12g of dried saffron, 450g of flowers are needed; the yield of dried spice from fresh saffron is only 13g/kg.
Saffron has a long history of use in traditional medicine. Saffron has also been used as a fabric dye, particularly in China and India, and in perfumery. It is used for religious purposes in India.
Saffron's aroma is often described by connoisseurs as reminiscent of metallic honey with grassy or hay-like notes, while its taste has also been noted as hay-like and sweet. Saffron also contributes a luminous yellow-orange colouring to foods. Saffron is widely used in Persian, Indian, European, and Arab cuisines. Confectioneries and liquors also often include saffron. Saffron is used in dishes ranging from the jewelled rice and khoresh of Iran, the Milanese risotto of Italy, the paella of Spain, the bouillabaisse of France, to the biryani with various meat accompaniments in South Asia. One of the most esteemed use for saffron is in the preparation of the Golden Ham, a precious dry-cured ham made with saffron from San Gimignano. Common saffron substitutes include safflower (Carthamus tinctorius, which is often sold as 'Portuguese saffron' or 'açafrão'), annatto, and turmeric (Curcuma longa). In Medieval Europe, turmeric was also known as 'Indian saffron' because of its yellow-orange colour.
Ingesting less than 1.5g of saffron is not toxic for humans, but doses greater than 5g can become increasingly toxic. Mild toxicity includes dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea, whereas at higher doses there can be reduced platelet count and spontaneous bleeding.
Saffron will not spoil, but will lose flavour within six months if not stored in an airtight, cool and dark place. Freezer storage can maintain flavour for up to two years
West Asia
Saffron was detailed in a 7th-century BCE Assyrian botanical reference compiled under Ashurbanipal. Documentation of saffron's use over the span of 3,500 years has been uncovered. Saffron-based pigments have indeed been found in 50,000-year-old depictions of prehistoric places in northwest Iran. The Sumerians later used wild-growing saffron in their remedies and magical potions. Saffron was an article of long-distance trade before the Minoan palace culture's 2nd millennium BCE peak. Ancient Persians cultivated Persian saffron (Crocus sativus 'Hausknechtii') in Derbent, Isfahan, and Khorasan by the 10th century BCE. At such sites, saffron threads were woven into textiles, ritually offered to divinities, and used in dyes, perfumes, medicines, and body washes. Saffron threads would thus be scattered across beds and mixed into hot teas as a curative for bouts of melancholy. Non-Persians also feared the Persians' usage of saffron as a drugging agent and aphrodisiac. During his Asian campaigns, Alexander the Great used Persian saffron in his infusions, rice, and baths as a curative for battle wounds. Alexander's troops imitated the practice from the Persians and brought saffron-bathing to Greece.
South Asia
Buddhist adepts wearing saffron-coloured robes, pray in the Hundred Dragons Hall, Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, Singapore.
Conflicting theories explain saffron's arrival in South Asia. Kashmiri and Chinese accounts date its arrival anywhere between 2500 and 900 years ago. Historians studying ancient Persian records date the arrival to sometime prior to 500 BCE, attributing it to a Persian transplantation of saffron corms to stock new gardens and parks. Phoenicians then marketed Kashmiri saffron as a dye and a treatment for melancholy. Its use in foods and dyes subsequently spread throughout South Asia. Buddhist monks wear saffron-coloured robes; however, the robes are not dyed with costly saffron but turmeric, a less expensive dye, or jackfruit. Monks' robes are dyed the same colour to show equality with each other, and turmeric or ochre were the cheapest, most readily available dyes. Gamboge is also used to dye the robes.
East Asia
Some historians believe that saffron came to China with Mongol invaders from Persia. Yet it is mentioned in ancient Chinese medical texts, including the forty-volume Shennong Bencaojing, a pharmacopoeia written around 300–200 BCE. Traditionally credited to the legendary Yan Emperor and the deity Shennong, it discusses 252 plant-based medical treatments for various disorders. Nevertheless, around the 3rd century AD, the Chinese were referring to it as having a Kashmiri provenance. According to the herbalist Wan Zhen, 'the habitat of saffron is in Kashmir, where people grow it principally to offer it to the Buddha'. Wan also reflected on how it was used in his time: 'The flower withers after a few days, and then the saffron is obtained. It is valued for its uniform yellow colour. It can be used to aromatise wine.'
South East Mediterranean
Fig 2: A detail from the "Saffron Gatherers" fresco of the "Xeste 3" building. It is one of many depicting saffron; they were found at the Bronze Age settlement of Akrotiri, on the Aegean island of Santorini..
The Minoans portrayed saffron in their palace frescoes by 1600–1500 BC; they hint at its possible use as a therapeutic drug. Ancient Greek legends told of sea voyages to Cilicia, where adventurers sought what they believed were the world's most valuable threads. Another legend tells of Crocus and Smilax, whereby Crocus is bewitched and transformed into the first saffron crocus. Ancient perfumers in Egypt, physicians in Gaza, townspeople in Rhodes, and the Greek hetaerae courtesans used saffron in their scented waters, perfumes and potpourris, mascaras and ointments, divine offerings, and medical treatments.
In late Ptolemaic Egypt, Cleopatra used saffron in her baths so that lovemaking would be more pleasurable. Egyptian healers used saffron as a treatment for all varieties of gastrointestinal ailments. Saffron was also used as a fabric dye in such Levantine cities as Sidon and Tyre in Lebanon. Aulus Cornelius Celsus prescribes saffron in medicines for wounds, cough, colic, and scabies, and in the mithridatium.
Western Europe
Saffron was a notable ingredient in certain Roman recipes such as jusselle and conditum. Such was the Romans' love of saffron that Roman colonists took it with them when they settled in southern Gaul, where it was extensively cultivated until Rome's fall. With this fall, European saffron cultivation plummeted. Competing theories state that saffron only returned to France with 8th-century AD Moors or with the Avignon papacy in the 14th century AD. Similarly, the spread of Islamic civilisation may have helped reintroduce the crop to Spain and Italy.
The 14th-century Black Death caused demand for saffron-based medicaments to peak, and Europe imported large quantities of threads via Venetian and Genoan ships from southern and Mediterranean lands such as Rhodes. The theft of one such shipment by noblemen sparked the fourteen-week-long Saffron War. The conflict and resulting fear of rampant saffron piracy spurred corm cultivation in Basel; it thereby grew prosperous. The crop then spread to Nuremberg, where endemic and insalubrious adulteration brought on the Safranschou code—whereby culprits were variously fined, imprisoned, and executed. Meanwhile, cultivation continued in southern France, Italy, and Spain.
The Essex town of Saffron Walden, named for its new specialty crop, emerged as a prime saffron growing and trading centre in the 16th and 17th centuries but cultivation there was abandoned. At the same time it was introduced to Cornwall and became a staple ingredient in Cornish buns. Though, once again, production in Cornwall died away. Saffron was re-introduced in Saffron Walden around 2013 as well as other parts of the UK (Cheshire).
Americas
Europeans introduced saffron to the Americas when immigrant members of the Schwenkfelder Church left Europe with a trunk containing its corms. Church members had grown it widely in Europe. By 1730, the Pennsylvania Dutch cultivated saffron throughout eastern Pennsylvania. Spanish colonies in the Caribbean bought large amounts of this new American saffron, and high demand ensured that saffron's list price on the Philadelphia commodities exchange was equal to that of gold. However, trade with the Caribbean collapsed in the aftermath of the War of 1812, when many saffron-bearing merchant vessels were destroyed. Yet, the Pennsylvania Dutch continued to grow lesser amounts of saffron for local trade and use in their cakes, noodles, and chicken or trout dishes. American saffron cultivation survives into modern times, mainly in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
For more information about the use of Saffron as a spice and a link to saffron-based recipes, see this site's Spice Guide page for Saffron
Please note that this recipe page (and all the other recipe pages on this site) are brought to you in association with the 'One Million People' campaign, which attempts to make available a number of ancient texts (particularly those relating to recipes) available for free on this site.
This page is presented as part of my 'History of the Spice Trade' section of the FabulousFusionFood Recipes site. You can use the table below to navigate the various sections of this history:
FabulousFusionFood History of the Spread of Saffron around the Globe
Introduction
Fig 1: Saffron threads, the dried stigmas and stamens of the saffron crocus used as a spice.
Saffron remains the world's most expensive spice: it also ranks amongst one of the oldest spices that humans have domesticated and employed as a flavouring. Saffron remains so expensive, as a single saffron crocus flower only produces three saffron threads per flower once a year and they have to be collected by hand. This is why saffron still costs US$5,000 per kg or more; this is why saffron has long been the world's costliest spice by weight.
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in food. Although some doubts remain on its origin, it is believed that saffron originated in Iran. However, Greece and Mesopotamia have also been suggested as the possible region of origin of this plant. Saffron crocus slowly propagated throughout much of Eurasia and was later brought to parts of North Africa, North America, and Oceania.
Saffron's taste and iodoform-like or hay-like fragrance result from the phytochemicals picrocrocin and safranal. It also contains a carotenoid pigment, crocin, which imparts a rich golden-yellow hue to dishes and textiles. Its recorded history is attested in a 7th-century BCE Assyrian botanical treatise, and it has been traded and used for thousands of years. In the 21st century, Iran produces some 90% of the world total for saffron.
Crocus sativus, is an autumn-flowering perennial plant unknown in the wild. It probably descends from the eastern Mediterranean autumn-flowering Crocus cartwrightianus which is also known as "wild saffron" and originated in Crete or Central Asia. C. thomasii and C. pallasii are other possible sources. However, recent research has (reference: Thomas Schmidt, Tony Heitkam, Susan Liedtke, Veit Schubert, Gerhard Menzel. Adding color to a century-old enigma: multi-color chromosome identification unravels the autotriploid nature of saffron (Crocus sativus) as a hybrid of wild Crocus cartwrightianus cytotypes. New Phytologist, 2019; DOI: 10.1111/nph.15715). As a genetically monomorphic clone, it slowly propagated throughout much of Eurasia.
It is a sterile triploid form, which means that three homologous sets of chromosomes make up each specimen's genetic complement; C. sativus bears eight chromosomal bodies per set, making for 24 in total. Being sterile, the purple flowers of C. sativus fail to produce viable seeds; reproduction hinges on human assistance: clusters of corms, underground, bulb-like, starch-storing organs, must be dug up, divided, and replanted. A corm survives for one season, producing via vegetative division up to ten "cormlets" that can grow into new plants in the next season. The compact corms are small, brown globules that can measure as large as 5 cm (2 in) in diameter, have a flat base, and are shrouded in a dense mat of parallel fibres; this coat is referred to as the "corm tunic". Corms also bear vertical fibres, thin and net-like, that grow up to 5cm above the plant's neck
Only in October, after most other flowering plants have released their seeds, do its brilliantly hued flowers develop; they range from a light pastel shade of lilac to a darker and more striated mauve. The flowers possess a sweet, honey-like fragrance. Upon flowering, the plants are 20–30 cm (8–12 in) in height and bear up to four flowers. A three-pronged style 25–30mm in length, emerges from each flower. Each prong terminates with a vivid crimson stigma, which are the distal end of a carpel.
Crocus sativus thrives in the Mediterranean maquis, an ecotype superficially resembling the North American chaparral, and similar climates where hot and dry summer breezes sweep semi-arid lands. It can nonetheless survive cold winters, tolerating frosts as low as −10°C and short periods of snow cover. Some reports suggest saffron can tolerate an air temperature range from −22 to 40°C. Irrigation is required if grown outside of moist environments such as Kashmir, where annual rainfall averages 1,000–1,500 mm (40–60 in); saffron-growing regions in Greece (500 mm or 20 in annually) and Spain (400 mm or 16 in) are far drier than the main cultivating Iranian regions. What makes this possible is the timing of the local wet seasons; generous spring rains and drier summers are optimal. Rain immediately preceding flowering boosts saffron yields; rainy or cold weather during flowering promotes disease and reduces yields. Persistently damp and hot conditions harm the crops, and rabbits, rats, and birds cause damage by digging up corms. Nematodes, leaf rusts, and corm rot pose other threats. Yet, Bacillus subtilis inoculation may provide some benefit to growers by speeding corm growth and increasing stigma biomass yield.
The high retail value of saffron is maintained on world markets because of labour-intensive harvesting methods, which require some 440,000 hand-picked saffron stigmas per kilogram – equivalently, 150,000 crocus flowers per kilogram. Forty hours of labour are needed to pick 150,000 flowers.
One freshly picked crocus flower yields on average 30 mg of fresh saffron or 7 mg dried; roughly 150 flowers yield 1g of dry saffron threads; to produce 12g of dried saffron, 450g of flowers are needed; the yield of dried spice from fresh saffron is only 13g/kg.
Saffron has a long history of use in traditional medicine. Saffron has also been used as a fabric dye, particularly in China and India, and in perfumery. It is used for religious purposes in India.
Saffron's aroma is often described by connoisseurs as reminiscent of metallic honey with grassy or hay-like notes, while its taste has also been noted as hay-like and sweet. Saffron also contributes a luminous yellow-orange colouring to foods. Saffron is widely used in Persian, Indian, European, and Arab cuisines. Confectioneries and liquors also often include saffron. Saffron is used in dishes ranging from the jewelled rice and khoresh of Iran, the Milanese risotto of Italy, the paella of Spain, the bouillabaisse of France, to the biryani with various meat accompaniments in South Asia. One of the most esteemed use for saffron is in the preparation of the Golden Ham, a precious dry-cured ham made with saffron from San Gimignano. Common saffron substitutes include safflower (Carthamus tinctorius, which is often sold as 'Portuguese saffron' or 'açafrão'), annatto, and turmeric (Curcuma longa). In Medieval Europe, turmeric was also known as 'Indian saffron' because of its yellow-orange colour.
Ingesting less than 1.5g of saffron is not toxic for humans, but doses greater than 5g can become increasingly toxic. Mild toxicity includes dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea, whereas at higher doses there can be reduced platelet count and spontaneous bleeding.
Saffron will not spoil, but will lose flavour within six months if not stored in an airtight, cool and dark place. Freezer storage can maintain flavour for up to two years
Origins of Saffron Cultivation
As detailed above, a recent scientific study has demonstrated saffron to be a hybrid of wild Crocus cartwrightianus cytotypes; thus is descended from only one species, the wild species Crocus cartwrightianus that is found in Greece, which also makes Greece the likely site of origin for the saffron crocus. Thus the likely origin of saffron is Greece, with very early human-mediated transmission to Iran.West Asia
Saffron was detailed in a 7th-century BCE Assyrian botanical reference compiled under Ashurbanipal. Documentation of saffron's use over the span of 3,500 years has been uncovered. Saffron-based pigments have indeed been found in 50,000-year-old depictions of prehistoric places in northwest Iran. The Sumerians later used wild-growing saffron in their remedies and magical potions. Saffron was an article of long-distance trade before the Minoan palace culture's 2nd millennium BCE peak. Ancient Persians cultivated Persian saffron (Crocus sativus 'Hausknechtii') in Derbent, Isfahan, and Khorasan by the 10th century BCE. At such sites, saffron threads were woven into textiles, ritually offered to divinities, and used in dyes, perfumes, medicines, and body washes. Saffron threads would thus be scattered across beds and mixed into hot teas as a curative for bouts of melancholy. Non-Persians also feared the Persians' usage of saffron as a drugging agent and aphrodisiac. During his Asian campaigns, Alexander the Great used Persian saffron in his infusions, rice, and baths as a curative for battle wounds. Alexander's troops imitated the practice from the Persians and brought saffron-bathing to Greece.
South Asia
Buddhist adepts wearing saffron-coloured robes, pray in the Hundred Dragons Hall, Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, Singapore.
Conflicting theories explain saffron's arrival in South Asia. Kashmiri and Chinese accounts date its arrival anywhere between 2500 and 900 years ago. Historians studying ancient Persian records date the arrival to sometime prior to 500 BCE, attributing it to a Persian transplantation of saffron corms to stock new gardens and parks. Phoenicians then marketed Kashmiri saffron as a dye and a treatment for melancholy. Its use in foods and dyes subsequently spread throughout South Asia. Buddhist monks wear saffron-coloured robes; however, the robes are not dyed with costly saffron but turmeric, a less expensive dye, or jackfruit. Monks' robes are dyed the same colour to show equality with each other, and turmeric or ochre were the cheapest, most readily available dyes. Gamboge is also used to dye the robes.
East Asia
Some historians believe that saffron came to China with Mongol invaders from Persia. Yet it is mentioned in ancient Chinese medical texts, including the forty-volume Shennong Bencaojing, a pharmacopoeia written around 300–200 BCE. Traditionally credited to the legendary Yan Emperor and the deity Shennong, it discusses 252 plant-based medical treatments for various disorders. Nevertheless, around the 3rd century AD, the Chinese were referring to it as having a Kashmiri provenance. According to the herbalist Wan Zhen, 'the habitat of saffron is in Kashmir, where people grow it principally to offer it to the Buddha'. Wan also reflected on how it was used in his time: 'The flower withers after a few days, and then the saffron is obtained. It is valued for its uniform yellow colour. It can be used to aromatise wine.'
South East Mediterranean
Fig 2: A detail from the "Saffron Gatherers" fresco of the "Xeste 3" building. It is one of many depicting saffron; they were found at the Bronze Age settlement of Akrotiri, on the Aegean island of Santorini..
In late Ptolemaic Egypt, Cleopatra used saffron in her baths so that lovemaking would be more pleasurable. Egyptian healers used saffron as a treatment for all varieties of gastrointestinal ailments. Saffron was also used as a fabric dye in such Levantine cities as Sidon and Tyre in Lebanon. Aulus Cornelius Celsus prescribes saffron in medicines for wounds, cough, colic, and scabies, and in the mithridatium.
Western Europe
Saffron was a notable ingredient in certain Roman recipes such as jusselle and conditum. Such was the Romans' love of saffron that Roman colonists took it with them when they settled in southern Gaul, where it was extensively cultivated until Rome's fall. With this fall, European saffron cultivation plummeted. Competing theories state that saffron only returned to France with 8th-century AD Moors or with the Avignon papacy in the 14th century AD. Similarly, the spread of Islamic civilisation may have helped reintroduce the crop to Spain and Italy.
The 14th-century Black Death caused demand for saffron-based medicaments to peak, and Europe imported large quantities of threads via Venetian and Genoan ships from southern and Mediterranean lands such as Rhodes. The theft of one such shipment by noblemen sparked the fourteen-week-long Saffron War. The conflict and resulting fear of rampant saffron piracy spurred corm cultivation in Basel; it thereby grew prosperous. The crop then spread to Nuremberg, where endemic and insalubrious adulteration brought on the Safranschou code—whereby culprits were variously fined, imprisoned, and executed. Meanwhile, cultivation continued in southern France, Italy, and Spain.
The Essex town of Saffron Walden, named for its new specialty crop, emerged as a prime saffron growing and trading centre in the 16th and 17th centuries but cultivation there was abandoned. At the same time it was introduced to Cornwall and became a staple ingredient in Cornish buns. Though, once again, production in Cornwall died away. Saffron was re-introduced in Saffron Walden around 2013 as well as other parts of the UK (Cheshire).
Americas
Europeans introduced saffron to the Americas when immigrant members of the Schwenkfelder Church left Europe with a trunk containing its corms. Church members had grown it widely in Europe. By 1730, the Pennsylvania Dutch cultivated saffron throughout eastern Pennsylvania. Spanish colonies in the Caribbean bought large amounts of this new American saffron, and high demand ensured that saffron's list price on the Philadelphia commodities exchange was equal to that of gold. However, trade with the Caribbean collapsed in the aftermath of the War of 1812, when many saffron-bearing merchant vessels were destroyed. Yet, the Pennsylvania Dutch continued to grow lesser amounts of saffron for local trade and use in their cakes, noodles, and chicken or trout dishes. American saffron cultivation survives into modern times, mainly in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
For more information about the use of Saffron as a spice and a link to saffron-based recipes, see this site's Spice Guide page for Saffron