Edible seaweed
Encyclopedia
Algae
Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
that can be eaten or used in the preparation of food. They may belong to one of several groups of multicellular algae: the red algae
Red algae
The red algae are one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae, and also one of the largest, with about 5,000–6,000 species of mostly multicellular, marine algae, including many notable seaweeds...
, green algae
Green algae
The green algae are the large group of algae from which the embryophytes emerged. As such, they form a paraphyletic group, although the group including both green algae and embryophytes is monophyletic...
, and brown algae
Brown algae
The Phaeophyceae or brown algae , is a large group of mostly marine multicellular algae, including many seaweeds of colder Northern Hemisphere waters. They play an important role in marine environments, both as food and for the habitats they form...
. Seaweed
Seaweed
Seaweed is a loose, colloquial term encompassing macroscopic, multicellular, benthic marine algae. The term includes some members of the red, brown and green algae...
s are used extensively as food in coastal cuisines around the world. Seaweed has been a part of diets in China
Chinese cuisine
Chinese cuisine is any of several styles originating in the regions of China, some of which have become highly popular in other parts of the world – from Asia to the Americas, Australia, Western Europe and Southern Africa...
, Japan
Japanese cuisine
Japanese cuisine has developed over the centuries as a result of many political and social changes throughout Japan. The cuisine eventually changed with the advent of the Medieval age which ushered in a shedding of elitism with the age of shogun rule...
, and Korea since prehistoric times. Seaweed is also consumed in many traditional European societies, especially in northern and western Ireland
Irish cuisine
Irish cuisine is a style of cooking originating from Ireland or developed by Irish people. It evolved from centuries of social and political change. The cuisine takes its influence from the crops grown and animals farmed in its temperate climate. The introduction of the potato in the second half of...
, Wales
Welsh cuisine
Welsh cuisine is the cuisine of Wales. It has influenced, and been influenced by, other British cuisine. Beef and dairy cattle are raised widely. Sheep farming is extensive in the country and lamb is the meat traditionally associated with Welsh cooking, particularly in dishes such as roast lamb...
(see Laver in the list below), Iceland
Icelandic cuisine
Important parts of Icelandic cuisine are lamb, dairy, and fish, due to Iceland's proximity to the ocean. Popular foods in Iceland include skyr, hangikjöt , kleinur, laufabrauð and bollur...
and western Norway. Seaweed is also eaten in some coastal parts of South West England
South West England
South West England is one of the regions of England defined by the Government of the United Kingdom for statistical and other purposes. It is the largest such region in area, covering and comprising Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. ...
and the Atlantic coast of France
French cuisine
French cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from France that has developed from centuries of social change. In the Middle Ages, Guillaume Tirel , a court chef, authored Le Viandier, one of the earliest recipe collections of Medieval France...
as well as Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
and Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
. The Māori people of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
traditionally used a few species of red and green seaweed. Most edible seaweeds are marine algae as most freshwater algae are toxic. While marine algae are not toxic, some do contain acids that irritate the digestion canal, while some others can have a laxative
Laxative
Laxatives are foods, compounds, or drugs taken to induce bowel movements or to loosen the stool, most often taken to treat constipation. Certain stimulant, lubricant, and saline laxatives are used to evacuate the colon for rectal and/or bowel examinations, and may be supplemented by enemas under...
and electrolyte balancing effect. Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
consumes no fewer than 7 types of seaweed identified by name, and the general term for seaweed is used primarily for science and not in menus. Seaweed contains high levels of iodine
Iodine
Iodine is a chemical element with the symbol I and atomic number 53. The name is pronounced , , or . The name is from the , meaning violet or purple, due to the color of elemental iodine vapor....
relative to other foods. In the Philippines, Tiwi
Tiwi, Albay
Tiwi is a 1st class municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines as recorded in the latest National Statistics Coordinating Board. According to the 2007 NSO Census of Population, it has a population of 49,185 people in 8,036 households....
, Albay
Albay
Albay is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region in Luzon. Its capital is Legazpi City and the province borders Camarines Sur to the north and Sorsogon to the south. Also to the northeast is Lagonoy Gulf....
residents discovered a new pancit
Pancit
Pancit or pansit is the term for noodles in Filipino cuisine. Noodles were introduced into the Philippines by the Chinese and have since been adopted into local cuisine. The term pancit is derived from the Hokkien pian i sit which means "something conveniently cooked fast." Different kinds of...
or noodles made from seaweed, which can be cooked into pancit canton, pancit luglug, spaghetti
Spaghetti
Spaghetti is a long, thin, cylindrical pasta of Italian origin. Spaghetti is made of semolina or flour and water. Italian dried spaghetti is made from durum wheat semolina, but outside of Italy it may be made with other kinds of flour...
or carbonara
Carbonara
Pasta alla carbonara is an Italian pasta dish based on eggs, cheese , bacon , and black pepper...
and is claimed to have health benefits such as being rich in calcium
Calcium
Calcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...
, magnesium
Magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
and iodine
Iodine
Iodine is a chemical element with the symbol I and atomic number 53. The name is pronounced , , or . The name is from the , meaning violet or purple, due to the color of elemental iodine vapor....
.
In some parts of Asia, nori
Nori
is the Japanese name for various edible seaweed species of the red alga Porphyra including most notably P. yezoensis and P. tenera, sometimes called laver. Finished products are made by a shredding and rack-drying process that resembles papermaking...
海苔 (in Japan), zicai 紫菜 (in China), and gim
Gim (food)
Gim , also spelled as kim, is the Korean-word for edible seaweed in the genus Porphyra. In Welsh this food is called laver...
김 (in Korea) are sheets of the dried red alga Porphyra
Porphyra
Porphyra is a foliose red algal genus of laver, comprising approximately 70 species. It grows in the intertidal zone, typically between the upper intertidal zone and the splash zone in cold waters of temperate oceans. In East Asia, it is used to produce the sea vegetable products nori and gim ,...
and are used in soups or to wrap sushi
Sushi
is a Japanese food consisting of cooked vinegared rice combined with other ingredients . Neta and forms of sushi presentation vary, but the ingredient which all sushi have in common is shari...
or onigiri
Onigiri
, also known as or rice ball, is a Japanese food made from white rice formed into triangular or oval shapes and often wrapped in nori . Traditionally, an onigiri is filled with pickled ume , salted salmon, katsuobushi, kombu, tarako, or any other salty or sour ingredient as a natural preservative...
. Chondrus crispus (commonly known as Irish moss) is another red alga used in producing various food additives, along with Kappaphycus and various gigartinoid seaweeds.
Seaweeds are also harvested or cultivated for the extraction of alginate, agar
Agar
Agar or agar-agar is a gelatinous substance derived from a polysaccharide that accumulates in the cell walls of agarophyte red algae. Throughout history into modern times, agar has been chiefly used as an ingredient in desserts throughout Asia and also as a solid substrate to contain culture medium...
and carrageenan
Carrageenan
Carrageenans or carrageenins are a family of linear sulfated polysaccharides that are extracted from red seaweeds. There are several varieties of carrageen used in cooking and baking. Kappa-carrageenan is used mostly in breading and batter due to its gelling nature...
, gelatinous substances collectively known as hydrocolloids or phycocolloids. Hydrocolloids have attained commercial significance, especially in food production as food additives. The food industry exploits the gelling, water-retention, emulsifying
Emulsion
An emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are normally immiscible . Emulsions are part of a more general class of two-phase systems of matter called colloids. Although the terms colloid and emulsion are sometimes used interchangeably, emulsion is used when both the dispersed and the...
and other physical properties of these hydrocolloids.
Polysaccharides in seaweed may be metabolized in humans through the action of bacterial gut enzymes. Research has failed to find such enzymes in North-American population, while being frequent in Japanese population.
Common edible seaweeds
Common edible seaweeds include:- ArameArameis a species of kelp best known for its use in Japanese cuisine. It is one of many species of seaweed used in Japanese dishes.Arame is high in calcium, iodine, iron, magnesium, and vitamin A as well as being a good dietary source for many other minerals. It also is harvested for alginate...
(Eisenia bicyclis) - Badderlocks (Alaria esculenta)
- Bladderwrack (Fucus vesiculosus)
- CarolaCarola (sea vegetable)Carola Carola Carola (Callophyllis variegata is a type of edible marine seaweed, a member of red algae known in Concepción de Chile and other parts of South America like Peru, the Falkland Islands, Tierra del Fuego. But also in New Guinea, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Alaska, St...
(Callophyllis variegata) - Carrageen moss (Mastocarpus stellatus)
- ChlorellaChlorellaChlorella is a genus of single-celled green algae, belonging to the phylum Chlorophyta. It is spherical in shape, about 2 to 10 μm in diameter, and is without flagella. Chlorella contains the green photosynthetic pigments chlorophyll-a and -b in its chloroplast...
- CochayuyoDurvillaea antarcticaDurvillaea antarctica is a large, robust bull kelp species and the dominant seaweed in southern New Zealand and Chile. D. antarctica has a circumpolar distribution between the latitudes of 29°S and 55°S . It is found on exposed shores, especially in the northern parts of its range, and attaches...
(Durvillaea antarctica) - DulseDulsePalmaria palmata Kuntze, also called dulse, dillisk, dilsk, red dulse, sea lettuce flakes or creathnach, is a red alga previously referred to as Rhodymenia palmata Greville. It grows on the northern coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It is a well-known snack food...
(Palmaria palmata) - Euchema cottonii
- Gutweed (Enteromorpha intestinalis)
- HijikiHijikiis a brown sea vegetable growing wild on rocky coastlines around Japan, Korea, and China. The written kanji forms of its two names, which are examples of ateji, literally mean deer-tail grass and sheep-nest grass, respectively.Hijiki is a traditional food and has been a part of a balanced diet in...
or Hiziki (Sargassum fusiforme) - Irish moss (Chondrus crispus)
- LaverLaver (seaweed)Laver is an edible algae often considered to be a seaweed that has a high mineral salt content, particularly iodine and iron. It is used for making laverbread, a traditional Welsh dish. Laver is common around the west coast of Britain and east coast of Ireland along the Irish Sea.It is smooth and...
(Porphyra laciniata/Porphyra umbilicalis) - Limu Kala (Sargassum echinocarpum)
- KombuKombuKombu or konbu , also called dashima or haidai , is edible kelp from the family Laminariaceae widely eaten in East Asia....
(Saccharina japonicaSaccharina japonicaSaccharina japonica is a marine species of Phaeophyceae , a type of kelp or seaweed, that is extensively cultivated in China, Japan and Korea....
) - Mozuku (Cladosiphon okamuranus)
- NoriNoriis the Japanese name for various edible seaweed species of the red alga Porphyra including most notably P. yezoensis and P. tenera, sometimes called laver. Finished products are made by a shredding and rack-drying process that resembles papermaking...
(various species of the red alga PorphyraPorphyraPorphyra is a foliose red algal genus of laver, comprising approximately 70 species. It grows in the intertidal zone, typically between the upper intertidal zone and the splash zone in cold waters of temperate oceans. In East Asia, it is used to produce the sea vegetable products nori and gim ,...
) - Oarweed (Laminaria digitata)
- OgonoriOgonoriOgonori , also called ogo or sea moss, is a type of edible seaweed eaten along the coasts of Japan, Southeast Asia, Hawaii, and the Caribbean. Ogonori is typically eaten cold and is a source of the thickener agar.-Uses:...
(Gracilaria) - Sea BeltLaminaria saccharinaSaccharina latissima is a brown algae , of the family Laminariaceae. It is also known by the common name sea belt. It is found in the north east Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea south to Galicia in Spain. It is not found in the Bay of Biscay but is common round the coasts of the British...
(Laminaria saccharina) - Sea GrapesCaulerpa lentilliferaCaulerpa lentillifera is one of the favored species of edible Caulerpa due to its soft and succulent texture. They are also known as sea grapes, green caviar, "ar-arosep", or "lato" in the Philippines. C. lentillifera is farmed in the Philippines and in Okinawa where the plant is eaten fresh.The...
or Green caviar (Caulerpa lentillifera) - Sea LettuceSea lettuceThe sea lettuces comprise the genus Ulva, a group of edible green algae that is widely distributed along the coasts of the world's oceans. The type species within the genus Ulva is Ulva lactuca Linnaeus, "lactuca" meaning lettuce...
(various species of the genus Ulva) - Spirulina (Arthrospira platensis and Arthrospira maxima)
- Thongweed (Himanthalia elongata)
- WakameWakame, Undaria pinnatifida, or Miyeok in Korean, is a sea vegetable, or edible seaweed. It has a subtly sweet flavour and is most often served in soups and salads....
(Undaria pinnatifida)
External links
- Seaweeds used as human food an FAOFood and Agriculture OrganizationThe Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and...
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