Collect and taste saffron: the red gold of Abruzzo.
Rural and culinary experience in Abruzzo: the collection of saffron, its processing and tasting.
Around mid-October, the saffron flowers begin to bloom and this flowering lasts about three weeks. Then follows a period of intense flowering, called "The days of coverage", which lasts from two to six days. The flowers that appear during the night must be collected at dawn of the following day, until no later than midday, to prevent the petals from dropping. It is best to collect the flowers that are still "dormant" or closed to ensure high quality saffron pistils. Once collected, the flowers are brought to the "fading" area, where the stigmas or pistils are removed by hand with great care and attention. The white and yellow parts of the stigma are not removed, only the red ones. Immediately after fading, drying is carried out, also called toasting, which is done daily until the last pistils are dry. Since they are too moist, the collected stigmas are dried by roasting at a temperature no higher than 60 ° C. Great care must be taken to ensure that the pistils do not overcook. Therefore the "toaster" (the person to whom the task is assigned) plays a very delicate role in the production of quality saffron. After roasting, the pistils will have significantly reduced size and weight, up to 80% of the original ones. It takes five kilos of fresh stigmas to obtain a single kilo of dry pistils, of a vivid red color. Early in the morning, as the sun rises, all on the saffron field to collect the crocus buds and then in a ritual that has been repeated for centuries, touch them around a table and dry them in the heat of the fire ...
Program
8.30 am
Everyone on the field! The saffron flower must be harvested early in the morning,
10.00 am
A little history ... Saffron arrives in Abruzzo, on the Navelli plateau, in the thirteenth century ...
11.00 am
The fading. By going to a manufacturing company, around a table, we will be engaged in the phase of the felling and selection of the stigmas, followed by the delicate toasting operation on the charcoals.
12.30 pm
To the test of taste. The excellence of Saffron from L'Aquila is known all over the world, so let's learn how to use this precious spice.
13.00 am
After the work of the field a well-deserved tasting from appetizer to dessert, made with Abruzzo's red gold.
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