I'm a minor addict of using seaweed both in cooking and as a dry snack. I'm curious to know of other people here who make use of it.
In East Asia, various seaweeds are staple parts of the dietary regime. North America, not so much, except among people of Asian heritage. I only discovered the delights of it a few years ago, and now consider seaweeds of various kinds a major portion of the condiments/ingredients in cooking many soups, stir-fries and pasta dishes. And also dried seaweed as munchy snacks.
Many seaweeds are edible, and have valuable nutritional qualities, notably including the concentration of iodine, useful for thyroid health. They tend to have a delightful light natural saltiness, and dried snack sheets are becoming more and more common in supermarkets. Condiment jars likewise.
If you use dried seaweed as an addition to things like soups, be aware that a tiny bit goes a long way. No matter what variety, it tends to expand supernaturally in water. But, for me, it is as useful as any thin leafy green such as spinach in such cooking. Reconstituted for five minutes or so in a bowl of water, common varieties such as the dark green nori, are excellent in scrambled eggs, too.
I've harvest seaweed from shorelines a few times, but, alas, I don't live near a shoreline where such stuff can be obtained. If you do, certain good forms are easy to identify. Notably, a complex of thin, sheet-like forms generally called "sea lettuce" are easily recognized; these are bright green, almost look like artificially-dyed cellophane, and can be found coating rocks at low tide. I've just snacked on them along the shore (excellent!), but if you collect them, give them a bit of a wash in fresh water, and let them dry on a bit of screen in the sun or under a warm lamp, crumble into bits and store in a jar.
Other aficionados?
caw
In East Asia, various seaweeds are staple parts of the dietary regime. North America, not so much, except among people of Asian heritage. I only discovered the delights of it a few years ago, and now consider seaweeds of various kinds a major portion of the condiments/ingredients in cooking many soups, stir-fries and pasta dishes. And also dried seaweed as munchy snacks.
Many seaweeds are edible, and have valuable nutritional qualities, notably including the concentration of iodine, useful for thyroid health. They tend to have a delightful light natural saltiness, and dried snack sheets are becoming more and more common in supermarkets. Condiment jars likewise.
If you use dried seaweed as an addition to things like soups, be aware that a tiny bit goes a long way. No matter what variety, it tends to expand supernaturally in water. But, for me, it is as useful as any thin leafy green such as spinach in such cooking. Reconstituted for five minutes or so in a bowl of water, common varieties such as the dark green nori, are excellent in scrambled eggs, too.
I've harvest seaweed from shorelines a few times, but, alas, I don't live near a shoreline where such stuff can be obtained. If you do, certain good forms are easy to identify. Notably, a complex of thin, sheet-like forms generally called "sea lettuce" are easily recognized; these are bright green, almost look like artificially-dyed cellophane, and can be found coating rocks at low tide. I've just snacked on them along the shore (excellent!), but if you collect them, give them a bit of a wash in fresh water, and let them dry on a bit of screen in the sun or under a warm lamp, crumble into bits and store in a jar.
Other aficionados?
caw
