What do the intellectual giants of /ck/ think of saffron?

>>21445479 (OP)
I'm just mad about saffron, saffron's mad about me

I use it probably 3 times a year.

Its overly expensive for what it is and does to food.

It's not actually that expensive. Consider a popular use case, paella. You've got like $30 worth of seafood in there, $10 worth of land critters, another $10 worth of things that aren't saffron, and $5 worth of saffron. And yet saffron gets all the attention for being expensive. Makes no sense. Might have made more sense when seafood and rice were poverty fare.

I've never tried it, but it's overrated

It's okay. You should have it once to know what it tastes like and to say you did, and you don't have to use much at a time so it's not quite as expensive as you'd think, but it doesn't make or break any dish

>>21445479 (OP)
big saffron fears the independant saffron farmer

I dont believe in using spices or seasonings.

>>21445479 (OP)
tastes like pool chlorine

Are there any inexpensive substitutes that will give a dish an appetizing yellow color?

>>21445504
Food that has caloric value and volume deserve to cost that much, a spice is a harder sell. Saffron costs more per gram than gold.

>>21445765
yellow no 5, egg yolks, turmeric, mustard seed, and piss