FACT OF THE DAY Saffron more popular than ever in local color

Saffron is a funny oddity that awakens the taste buds and is also grown around Nîmes. The truffle has its mysteries, and so does saffron! More expensive to buy than gold, saffron seems easy to bring out of the ground. “ No ! contrary to what journalists spread, it is not an expensive product. It's a figment of the imagination because it doesn't weigh much. A small sample of 0.5 grams, you make a hundred dishes… Do not confuse the price per kilo and the price per use! », explains Yves Texier, head of Safran de Camargue. It must be said that if cultivation seems easy, upkeep and maintenance complicate the task.

Of crocus sativusthis is the little name of the plant for Latin lovers, the three small red stigmas (end of the pistil) are extracted which will be dehydrated to then be consumed as a spice.

Saffron has several gastronomic properties. It colors and flavors. It is also an antioxidant, an enhancer, but also an energizing harmonizer which covers the entire spectrum of human nutrition. Saffron can play a protective role against neurological and psychiatric disorders and represents a relatively favorable and safe treatment, but it can also be lethal if you ingest it in too large doses.

Yves Texier takes care of managing the SAS and Robert Boisson of the association. A shared SCI for the Marguerittes land completes the system. All this under the name of Safran de Camargue. “ We gathered around the saffron. The company produces saffron and the association debates and has fun bringing saffron to life, including among individuals who want to plant saffron. » Saffron has no viable seed so it is up to Man to get involved. With his little hands, he plants and reproduces the crocus of all desires.

There are three groups of saffron crocuses which give rise to nine species. Probably originating from Greece, saffron thrives in places with dry, hot summer breezes but also in semi-arid or even arid lands. Good guy, he also copes with negative temperatures!

« We started it to have fun, at home. One day, we contacted Frédéric Jauras, a saffron ayatollah, who has unfortunately since died. We continued to try to create a saffron sector in the south of France. » The high price of saffron is explained by the arduousness and the time required for its harvest and sorting, which is carried out manually. Additionally, a very large number of flowers must be manipulated to ultimately obtain a commercial quantity of saffron. In fact, one pound (0.45 kg) of dry saffron requires the harvest of nearly 50,000 to 75,000 flowers! Roughly speaking, the 150,000 flowers needed to obtain one kilo of dry saffron require nearly 40 hours of intense work involving the whole family.

« We have a large plot of land in Vauvert and a smaller one in Marguerittes. These two lands are on the bed of the Vistre, a terroir particularly well suited to saffron. As with wine, terroir is very important, but few studies have been done on the quality of saffron in relation to its terroir. »

The great team will be present at the Miam d'Alès show which promises to be saffron. “ 2024 was a good year even if it was a year of economic recovery. We are not dissatisfied with the actions we have taken, including in the markets or in points of sale which take our products and it works well! We are expanding. Soon a new store will open in Tarascon and we will have our saffron there. »

The habit of consuming saffron has been somewhat lost over the centuries in our region. The appetite is returning but between the prices which are still seen as high and the lack of knowledge of its use… Besides, how is saffron used so that it releases its aromas without harming the rest of the dish?

« A word of advice: dilution! If you put saffron directly in your kitchen, you will have a bad result. To function well at the culinary level, saffron must be used diluted in water, alcohol, wine, crème fraîche, milk… If you make rice, the day before, you take the water you will need to cook the rice and you put a few strands of saffron to marinate. If you are making a paella, you will need several liters of water with several other sprigs to have saffron water. At the end of cooking the paella you can add a little more saffron, but saffron that you have bought whole to be sure that you have saffron. »

Yes, watch out for scams. If you find saffron well below market prices, there is a wolf. And it might be called turmeric!

Initially, pure saffron was the first product marketed by the company. “ We explain all this to people if they want. The smallest package is 0.2 grams of saffron, it costs seven euros. With this you can make a paella for 50 people or ten dishes. »

There is also fleur de sel flavored with saffron which you can use like classic salt, but which will obviously have a different taste. For a vinaigrette or a dish to deglaze, you have vinegars. “ Wine vinegar, cider vinegar and pure saffron vinegar. It's great! We also have a saffron mustard made by a master butcher because it's quite complex to make correctly. It's an old-fashioned mustard, we've sold hundreds of jars of it, it's an excellent mustard! »

The company also makes jams which give pride of place to saffron which never takes over the chosen fruit. Even if informed consumers are not all doctors, saffron syrup is also excellent for the pain of babies who have growing teeth. You can also drink it like a normal syrup and, for the most gourmet, try it with a small white wine like kir (in moderation of course). “ Invited to an olive festival, I was served a good black tapenade. I added a little saffron syrup and I guarantee it was excellent! You can also sweeten tea, yogurt, panna cotta, etc. » All products sold under the Safran de Camargue brand are less than 10 euros. The Beaucaire brewery takes care of the beer. “ Saffron acts a bit like fruit in beer. With the white one you smell a lot of saffron, a little less with the blonde. »

This November 3, expect some fun in the countryside! A Sunday outing with the family is even better. The parking lot is large, the land can accommodate curious children. “ We welcome visitors, we present the products to them if they want, otherwise we accompany them into the field to show them the saffron flowers. This year there are not many but we will make them pick a few stigmas, and they will leave with their small box of saffron which is enough for a few meals. In general it makes them want to put some in the garden… We give them lots of advice! »

Between noon and 5 p.m., on Chemin des Canaux, between Marguerittes and Rodilhan (corner of Chemin de Viecolures), a few steps from the bridge over the Vistre you will see a field on which to park and a banner announcing the event. Grilled meats and saffron rice will be available with voluntary participation.