Edible Seaweed

One of the best things about edible seaweed is all the types that are available, though some don’t taste particularly nice. The only thing to watch out for when choosing what type of seaweed to eat is that some species contain a type of carbohydrates that people can’t digest, and can cause stomach upsets such as cramps, but at least it’s not poisonous right?

Here are some of the most common edible seaweed and where to find them.

Wakame

This type of seaweed is only native to areas of Japan, China, and Korea, but was named one of the 100 worst invasive species in the world and can now be found around most of Europe, Australia, New Zealand parts of central and South America.

Cooking:

The leaves should be cut into small pieces when cooking as they tend to expand quite a bit and provide a slightly sweet flavor. It’s mostly used in soups and as a flavouring instead of being eaten directly, and if you’ve ever had miso soup this is the type used.

Irish Moss

Though native to Ireland this type can now be found across most of Europe and parts of North America. An added bonus of this plant is that it has a very high protein content, which makes up around 10% of its dried weight, and is also very rich in iodine and sulfur.

Irish moss is most commonly used in products instead of being eaten and has a number of supposed health benefits. The main one is supposed to soothe the mucous membranes throughout the body and is sometimes used externally to soften the skin in the form of face masks and creams.

Cooking:

The first thing to do with this plant is give it a really good wash. When it’s softened by water it will give off a strong ocean smell which is completely normal, though the huge amount of jelly that forms can be disconcerting.

There is something produced within the cell walls of this plant called polysaccharides which turn into jelly when boiled, which means you’ll have to give them a quick wash in some clean hot water after the main boiling to make sure it’s not too slimy. Since this type doesn’t taste very nice, it’s best to utilize its jelly content as a thickener in soups.

Dulse

This is a very common type of seaweed that grows on the northern coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and is one of the best types to eat. The flavor of dulse is savory and salty, and smoking the plant can apparently make it taste a little bit like bacon.

A study was carried out on this type of seaweed to see at what point its high mineral content would become fatal to a human being, and the conclusion was that to kill a fully grown adult they would need to eat 150kg within 2 hours, which is beyond impossible, so don’t be afraid to munch this one down like its something you found free on the beach.

Cooking:

This type is one of the more palatable ones if you’re into eating raw seaweed, but it’s much better cooked. The texture and flavor of this type are actually quite nice, so don’t be afraid to use it as you would a normal vegetable within a stew or bake.

Arame

This type is only native to temperate Pacific waters, though it is cultivated elsewhere and has also become mildly invasive in some areas, though it’s very unlikely you’ll find any around the coast of Europe.

Cooking

This one is very popular in Japanese cuisine and is added to everything from soups and casseroles to muffins and cakes. If you intend to cook with this type though you can’t depend on finding any in the wild unless you’re off the coast of Japan somewhere, so mail order is the way forward with this one.

Rhodophyta / Red Algae

A very common type of seaweed which inhabits most of the world, particularly temperate zones, and can be found all around the coast of Britain. There are currently over 7000 recognized types of red algae and it also happens to be one of the more interesting types. At a glance, the plant looks quite basic, but if you look really close you will see it’s made up of countless tiny hollow tubes.

Cooking

Don’t, just don’t. This plant is edible and doesn’t contain any traces of poison or toxins, however, it does contain a large amount of a certain type of carbohydrate that the body can’t digest, which means you’ll basically have grit moving through your digestive system if you eat this. It isn’t known as one of the types of seaweed to eat and has never been popular in any ancient people’s diets. The only use I could find for this plant was that it used to be dried and ground into a powder and consumed to treat tapeworms, presumably getting rid of them by filling them with grit and grinding them out.