Saffron: The World’s Most Valuable Spice

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]Have you ever heard of the  world’s most expensive spice?

[00:00:03]At times, even 1 gram has been more expensive than gold.

[00:00:07]This is saffron. But the real surprise is this: this spice comes from just three tiny red threads— the female part of a flower. To produce 1 kilogram, around 170,000 flowers are needed. Each one is picked by hand, before sunrise.

[00:00:23]And this plant is sterile. It produces no seeds.

[00:00:26]It can only reproduce through its bulbs. One of the oldest pieces of evidence for its use in the ancient World is the 3,500-year-old frescoes in Santorini.

[00:00:37]Today, it is still valued as a spice in cuisines around the world.

[00:00:41]But it does more than add color and aroma. It contains a compound called crocin, which may have effects on mood. So how can you tell the real thing?

[00:00:50]Drop a few threads into warm water. Real saffron slowly turns the water golden… while the threads remain red. Fake ones quickly turn the water red or lose their color. Even today, it is still harvested by hand  using traditional methods.

[00:01:04]And this labor-intensive process is what keeps it one of the most valuable spices in the world.