The Spice That Once Cost as Much as Gold

This spice used to be worth its weight in gold. Send this to someone who loves cooking. Saffron comes from one small purple flower, the crocus. Inside each flower are three thin red threads, and only those delicate threads are ever used.

Ovaj začin je nekad vrijedio koliko i zlato iste težine. Pošalji ovo nekome tko voli kuhati. Šafran dolazi od jednog malog ljubičastog cvijeta, šafranike. Unutar svakog cvijeta su tri tanke crvene niti, i samo se te nježne niti ikad koriste.

Workers must pick every thread by hand, early in the morning before the flowers open in the sun. It takes tens of thousands of flowers to make just one pound of saffron. For most of history, that pound of dried threads cost about the same as a pound of gold.

Radnici moraju ubrati svaku nit ručno, rano ujutro prije nego se cvjetovi otvore na suncu. Treba na desetke tisuća cvjetova da se dobije samo pola kilograma šafrana. Kroz veći dio povijesti, to pola kilograma osušenih niti koštalo je otprilike koliko i pola kilograma zlata.

Today gold costs much more than saffron, but saffron remains the most expensive spice in any kitchen in the world. A single pinch can change the color and the taste of a whole pot of rice.

Danas zlato košta mnogo više od šafrana, ali šafran ostaje najskuplji začin u bilo kojoj kuhinji na svijetu. Jedan prstohvat može promijeniti boju i okus cijelog lonca riže.