Directions
The sugar stick is used as a stirrer in your cup of tea, with each stir your tea will be infused with sweetness and florally scented saffron. One stick can be used in a few cups of tea so is great when entertaining, or can also be left to dry and used at a later time.
Did you know?
In every Iranian household, you are bound to find some sugar sticks or individual crystals next to the teapot, or as it is called in Iran, nabat. These glittering, sunshine-yellow crystals are made by heating large amounts of sugar in boiling water, just before it starts to turn to caramel the mixture is put into large pots. These pots will either have strings or sticks attached to them which will be immersed into the sugar solution and left for days to cool and become supersaturated. A supersaturated solution means there is more solute, in this case, sugar, so as the temperature decreases the sugar comes out of the solution forming crystals.
The crystals start to form on anything that is also immersed in the sugar water, and so, they build and build until you get a full crystalised stick of sugar. They are then sprinkled with beautifully fragrant saffron and left to dry. The origin of nabat is unclear but the theory goes that it could have originated in the historical city of Isfahan.
Nabat sticks are a great addition to any tea tray and give it a traditional Iranian feel and a bit of a wow factor to visiting guests.
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