Awhile ago, a friend gave me a generous portion of her saffron stash. I have scrimped and saved every little bit of those precious strands. Have you ever wondered why saffron is so expensive? These delicate little threads are derived from the stamen of crocus flowers. To make it even worse, each crocus flower only has three stamen. Kind of makes you respects those little threads, doesn't it? I felt it was time to put those hard-earned threads to work.
Put ¼ teaspoon crumbled saffron threads in a small bowl and add 1 tablespoon of very hot water. Set aside.
Chop ½ cup red onion.
Heat 2 tablespoon olive in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add 1 ½ cups (9 oz) orzo and toast, stirring frequently, about 3-4 minutes.
Stir in the saffron mixture.
Add 2 ½ cups water and 1 teaspoon salt.
Cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the orzo is just tender, about 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat.
From a medium bulb of fennel, chop 1 cup of the vegetable and sprinkle over the cooked orzo. Cover and let the fennel soften off the heat, about 5 minutes.
Stir the fennel into the orzo. Chop 2 tablespoon of the fennel fronds. Serve the orzo, sprinkled with the chopped fronds.
Ricardo
Looks super delicious and well presented 🙂 xxx
Rico|Recipes
Toaster Oven Recipes
Yummy,yummy,yummy,simply mouth-watering stuff!
I can smell it right here!
I guess I can't do anything else until I can get this delicacy to treat and mesmerize my senses. And that's going to be right now.
Wonderful recipe! Great post!
The Food Addicts
Saffron! My goodness.. my husband has been trying to buy saffron, and i just can't believe how expensive it is for just a tiny amount! But it's definitely something fun to cook with. Great post!
Mathilde
I have never tried orzo but as soon as I find some, I will try this recipe!
Esi
This sounds absolutely delicious. I have some saffron that I need to use so I will definitely keep this in mind.
tokyoterrace
This looks so delicious- I love meals like this. Simple and tasty but unique. Great recipe. Thanks for sharing!
applecrumbles
That has to be delicious. Saffron and fennel? - can't go wrong there. Definitely going on my must try list.
janet
That looks wonderful and I have been craving saffron lately, I think I'll have to make this!
Cookin' Canuck
S. Stockwell, I too was worried about the fennel being tender enough, but was pleasantly surprised. It was perfectly done.
s. stockwell
so lucky to have a stash of saffron? we are all out? wondering if the fennel is tender enough? must be? looks delicious. best, s
iRaw
This looks delicious!