According to the Chinese Medicine Guide, saffron can generally be recognized as genuine or fake by appearance, texture, smell or brewing.
1. Appearance: Real saffron is made of stamens on the flower, with the appearance of a red filament; while fake saffron is grass saffron, with the appearance of a small flower.
2. Texture: real saffron will not appear oil stains when pressed, while the fake saffron is oil-impregnated treatment, pressing will appear obvious oil stains.
3. Odor: real saffron has a strong and special aroma, while fake saffron has a light flavor or even no obvious odor.
4. Brewing: After brewing, the water of real saffron will be yellow, and the color will not fade away; while the water of fake saffron will become reddish after brewing, and the color will turn white and fade away.
If you need to identify saffron, it is recommended to go to a regular hospital and identify it under the guidance of a professional herbalist.