How to Check the Purity of Saffron at Home with Simple Tests

Saffron is among the most costly spices in the world, and therefore, its authenticity is a concern that should not be avoided. In the market, saffron is combined with artificial threads or dyes and sold in adulterated form, which is harmful to health. But the best part is, you do not have to test saffron in a laboratory to determine whether it is genuine or not. 

The quality and purity of saffron can be easily checked at home with the help of a few tests. By using some safe techniques with the items that are readily available in the kitchen, you can check the purity of the saffron easily. In this guide, you’ll learn how to test saffron purity at home and enjoy the real flavour, aroma, and benefits without worry.

How to test real saffron easily at home?

Here are some of the steps given below regarding how to check the purity of the saffron with some easy and available items at home. Go through them one by one. 

Visual Inspection

Look at the saffron strands. True saffron is very red and a little light in the orange ends, as well as skinny and dry in texture. Do not use excessively bright, thick, or uniform threads. Comparing original vs fake saffron visually can help you spot dyed or artificial threads before any further testing.

Water Test

Prepare a little cup of warm water and put several strands of saffron in it. The pure saffron will give out colour gradually, turning the colour of the water to golden-orange. Counterfeit saffron tends to dissolve instantly and could leave a mark on your hands, which means it is artificial. It is an easy and dependable method of commencement testing. This is one of the reliable Home methods to test saffron that you can use to check whether you are using the quality saffron or not. 

Smell Test

Authentic saffron is very robust, sweet, and earthy, and artificial saffron can either smell of chemicals or does not contain any smell. Take a strand of your dress and squeeze it and smell it; the strength of the smell is a very clear sign of whether it is real or not.

Taste Test

For the Saffron purity test, put one saffron thread in your tongue. The real saffron has a slight taste of bitterness and earthiness, and fake saffron can have a sweet or artificial taste. This little test will either verify quality without wasting the spice. 

Paper Test

Rub saffron on a sheet of white paper. True saffron leaves a lightly spreading, slow orange-red stain. Artificial colouring can be easily noticed by a rough, snowy stain left behind due to fake dyed threads, and this is the major sign of adulterated saffron.

Milk Test

Place filaments of saffron into the warm milk. Saffron gradually releases its colour and taste, becoming a golden-orange powder and having a mild smell. Whenever it is added to the milk, fake saffron will instantly change the milk colour to bright red and create a fake aroma. It is a delicious and easy way of checking the purity of saffron at home.

Sum up!

Verifying the purity of the saffron is not as difficult as others might believe. Even with simple tests such as visual inspection, water soaking, smelling, tasting, and even with the use of milk or paper, there is no doubt that you can distinguish between real saffron and the fakes. Such convenient ways are cheap, high-quality, and save your money from spending on fake saffron. 
Simple measures, when practised, can make everyone great at detecting the genuine saffron. The next time you purchase this valuable spice, you will know exactly what you are purchasing, and your cooking, desserts, or drinks will be safe and really good in taste. So, rely on the Saffron quality test methods that we have discussed above and choose quality over adulteration. If you want to purchase good-quality saffron, then you can connect with the Dried Cure. They will provide you with the authentic and safe saffron that you can easily use for various purposes.

Also Read: https://driedcure.com/blogs/how-to-identify-pure-saffron-threads-before-buying/