Gheymeh nesar (3 persons)

Ingredients:

For the meat:

• 300 g vean, cut into 3 cm cubes
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 medium onion, cut into small cubes
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 cinnamon powder
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp saffron grinded and dissolved in a cup hot water

For the rice:

See saffron rice for instructions

For the garnish:

• 1 cup dried barberry berries
• 1 cup almond slices
• 1 cup pistachio slices
• 1 cup orange peel jam
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 30 g butter

The barberries:

1. Add 1/3 of the butter at the same time as the barberry in a pan.
2. Add all the sugar, add the saffron water and fry for 5 minutes.

The meat:

3. Add the onions and a bit turmeric in another pan.
4. Add the meat and roast it.
5. Add the cardamom powder, pepper, cinnamon powder.
6. Add the tomato paste.
7. Add 6 tbsp saffron water.
8. Add 1 cup of water and let the meat cook.
9. Once the meat is cooked, add the barberries, the orange peel jam and the almond slices. Add some salt.
10. Garnish with pistachio slices and serve with rice.

Indian Kheer

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 100 grams of dessert rice
• 500 ml almond milk (from whole milk)
• 3 threads of saffron
• 3 tbsp agave syrup
• 3 cardamom pods
• 30 grams of raisins
• 40 grams of pistachios

Preparation:

1. Take the threads of saffron, put them in the pan with about 2 tbsp milk and let it heat up. Stir the saffron well back and forth to release the flavor.
2. Now add the rice, the remaining milk, cardamom and agave syrup.
3. Bring to a boil and turn the heat to low so that the kheer can thicken.
4. As soon as it has the desired thickness, the raisins can be mixed through.
5. The cardamom pods can be removed from the rice and discarded.
6. Chop the pistachios roughly
7. Divide the dessert between 4 bowls and add the pistachios. The dessert can be consumed immediately or first cooled in the refrigerator.

Enjoy your kheer with saffron! 

Spanish Paella

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 200 g chorizo ​​sausage
• 1 onion
• 400 gr chicken thighs (diced)
• 200 gr large shrimps
• 20 clams or cockles
• 300 gr paella rice (or risotto rice)
• 200 gr peas (frozen)
• 2 bell peppers
• 1 red pepper
• Pinch of smoked paprika
• 2 to 3 threads of saffron
• ½ tin of diced tomatoes
• 1 liter chicken stock (from stock cubes)
• 1 lemon
• Fresh parsley

Preparation:

1. Cut the chorizo ​​into pieces and fry it (without oil) in a large paella or wok pan. As soon as the chorizo ​​has become slightly crispy, remove the pieces from the pan and let them drain. Leave the fat in the pan.
2. Then add the cubes of chicken to the pan and fry until the cubes of chicken are baked all around (it does not have to be cooked yet). Now add the raw shrimps and let them fry with the chicken. Chop the onion and cut the bell pepper into cubes. Add the onion, bell pepper and red pepper and fry for a while.
3. Now add the rice and mix well. Add the saffron to the stock.
4. Add the tomato cubes and paprika and add 2 tablespoons of stock with saffron and let it be absorbed by the rice while stirring. Repeat this until the rice is approximately cooked, this will take about 18 minutes.
5. Halfway through, add the peas, fried chorizo ​​and clams and let them cook in the paella. Put a lid on the pan.
6. Add some salt and pepper if necessary. Before serving, sprinkle the paella with some lemon and garnish the paella with lemon wedges and parsley.

Enjoy your paella with saffron!

Italian Risotto with Saffron (Risotto alla Milanese)

Ingredients for 2 persons:

• 160 grams of Carnaroli risotto
• 1 shallot
• 1 clove of garlic
• 30g butter
• 20 threads of saffron
• 100ml Italian dry white wine
• 500ml chicken stock
• 20g Parmigiano Reggiano
• Sea salt
• Fresh pepper

Preparation:

1. Heat the chicken stock. Peel the skin from the garlic and shallot and cut it into fine pieces.
2. Fill a glass with 50 ml of warm water and let the saffron soak in it.
3. Melt butter in a heavy-bottom frying pan or skillet. When the butter is golden brown, sauté the garlic and shallot. After about 2 minutes, the risotto can be added to the pan and fry it for 1 to 2 minutes. Do this so that the grains of risotto are completely covered with the moisture from the pan.
4. Deglaze the contents of the pan with the Italian dry white wine and allow the wine to be absorbed by the risotto. Then add the water with saffron. Then add the chicken stock, spoon by spoon. Wait a little while each time before adding the next spoonful of chicken stock.
5. Once the risotto is cooked and almost the texture you want, add 1 more small spoonful of chicken stock. The risotto can now be removed from the heat. Add some pepper, sea salt and shaved Parmigiano Reggiano and let another small knob of butter melt through the risotto.

Your Risotto with Saffron is now ready!

French Bouillabaisse + rouille (4 persons)

Ingredients for the soup:

• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 onion, cut into thin rings
• 1 leek, cut into rings
• 1 fennel, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
• 2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
• 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
• 1 anglerfish fillet of 200 grams
• 1 sunfish of 800 grams, filleted, keep the bones and the head
• 1 poon of 400 grams, filleted, keep the bones and the head
• 1 sea bream of 300-400 grams, filleted, keep the bones and the head
• 2 tablespoons pernod
• 1 glass of dry white wine
• 5 pieces of orange peel, without white
• 1 star anise
• 1 teaspoon of saffron threads
• 400 grams of small potatoes, peeled
• 250 grams of mussels, cleaned
• 1 tablespoon of chives, finely chopped
• 4 slices of baguette, cut diagonally
• 2 tablespoons rouille * (see below)
• Pepper and salt

Preparation:

1. Heat the olive oil in a pan and add the leek, onion, fennel seeds and fennel and let it fry until it turns a light golden yellow color.
2. Add the tomato puree, tomato and garlic and stir. Place the firm fish in here, let it get hot and deglaze with pernod.
3. Add the water and white wine until everything is underneath.
4. Add the salt, the star anise, the orange peel and half of the saffron. Let this boil for 20 minutes on low heat.
5. Cut the fish fillets into three parts. Strain the stock and press all ingredients through the sieve with the back of a spoon.
6. Put 1/3 th of the sifted soup in a deep frying pan and cook the potatoes in it until done.
7. Sprinkle some salt over the pieces of fish and put the fish in another deep frying pan with the mussels, the rest of the saffron and the rest of the soup. Let it simmer for 7 minutes with the lid on the pan.
8. Coat the slices of baguette with olive oil and salt and let it grill in the oven for a minute.
9. Remove the fish from the pan, strain the potatoes and use the soup from this to mix it with the soup in which the fish was cooked. Place the pieces of mussels and fish in a deep dish. Pour over the soup and garnish with chives. Serve it with the croutons and rouille.

Ingredients for the rouille (traditional garlic sauce with the fish soup):

• 2 egg yolks
• Pinch of Saffron
• Pinch of Cayenne pepper
• Pinch of paprika powder
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 5 dl olive oil
• 1 red pepper

Preparation:

Finely rub the garlic, pepper and salt in a mortar. Add this along with the egg yolks and add cayenne pepper and saffron. Slowly add olive oil until it becomes a thick sauce.

Saffron ice cream

Ingredients:

• 4 medium eggs
• 250 ml. Full Milk
• 300 ml. whipped cream
• 1 vanilla pod
• 1 tsp of saffron
• 200 grams of fine granulated sugar or white caster sugar
• 2 tbsp rose water
• 125 grams of unsalted pistachio nuts

Preparation:

1. Split the eggs, you only need the yolks (yolks).
2. Heat half of the cream with the milk over low heat in a saucepan. Bring it to a boil and add the vanilla pod and some salt.
3. Now add the saffron and let the mixture steep for at least half an hour.
4. Add the sugar to the egg yolks and beat this mixture until creamy.
5. Once the milk has cooled with saffron, you can add it in small splashes. Continue to beat well so that the mixture becomes creamy and foamy.
6. Once all the milk with saffron has been whisked into the egg yolks and sugar mixture, you can start beating the rest of the whipped cream.
7. When the whipped cream is almost stiff, fold it into the saffron mixture. Now it is ready to go into the freezer. Put the mixture in a freezer container with a lid and put it in the freezer.
8. Once the mixture has cooled down, stir well and add 2 tablespoons of rose water and 125 grams of chopped pistachio nuts.
9. Stir the mixture at least twice an hour to prevent ice crystals from forming.

Enjoy your delicious saffron ice cream!

Saffron rice pudding (shole zard)

Ingredients (for 6 persons)

• 1 cup of rice (dessert rice is ideal for this recipe)
• 6 cups of water
• 1 cup of sugar
• 70 g butter
• ¼ cup of rose water
• 1 teaspoon saffron
• Almond and pistachio shavings
• Cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Rinse the rice and cook the rice over medium heat. Place the lid on the pan at an angle.
2. Stir the rice regularly and remove the foam from time to time.
3. Let the rice cook further on low heat until the moisture has been absorbed.
4. Add the sugar and mix well. Add a little boiling water if the rice has become too hard.
5. Grind the saffron into a powder and add it. Then add the butter to the rice.
6. Let it boil for about 20 minutes now.
7. Add 1 tablespoon of almond flakes and 1 tablespoon of pistachio flakes. Also add half a teaspoon of cinnamon.
8. Add the rose water and mix everything.
9. Now pour it into bowls.
10. Decorate the rice pudding with some cinnamon, almond and pistachio shavings and some dried rose petals.

Saffron rice (for 2 persons)

1. Take 2 cups of Basmati rice and wash it carefully.
2. Then soak this in cold water with 1 tablespoon of salt, let it stand for 30 minutes.
3. Boil a half-filled pan with water.
4. Then take the rice and empty the water, now pour the rice into the boiled water and let it boil for 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Now pour the rice into a colander so that the rice grains are longer and the arsenic is removed.
6. Once this is done, the rice can go back into the pan, but this time without boiled water.
7. Take 2 tablespoons of hot water and add this to the rice.
8. Take 25 grams of butter and add this to the rice.
9. Now put a cloth around the lid of the pan and let the rice steam for 10 minutes.
10. Now that the rice is cooked, take 1/3 of the rice and put 3 tablespoons of the saffron powder in boiled water over the rice.
11. As a last step, add the 1/3 saffron rice to the 2/3 normal rice.

You now have beautifully colored and delicious saffron rice!