Japanese Cuisine Codexery

Edible seaweed

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Edible seaweeds are multicellular algae from red, green, or brown groups that are harvested for culinary use.[1] They typically contain high amounts of fiber and are used to extract gelling substances like alginate, agar, and carrageenan.[1] Marine algae constitute the majority of edible seaweeds, whereas freshwater algae are typically poisonous.[2]

Key facts and history

Seaweed is also traditionally consumed in Iceland, western Norway, the Atlantic coast of France, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and parts of South West England.[3] The Māori people of New Zealand and Indigenous Australians have traditionally used several seaweed species.[4] In the northern Philippines, cold-water red seaweeds are harvested and dried into black nori-like sheets called gamet.[5] A traditional gelling ingredient in the Philippines is gulaman, made from agar and carrageenan, first attested in Spanish dictionaries in 1754.[6]

Coastal cuisines around the globe, notably in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific Islands, make heavy use of seaweeds as food.[4] China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and Hawaii are the regions where edible seaweeds feature most prominently in local cooking.[4] Methane output from cows can be lowered by feeding them the seaweed Asparagopsis taxiformis.[7]

What the cited sources add

The Oregon State University Linus Pauling Institute states that seafood and certain edible seaweeds are excellent sources of dietary iodine.[8] It notes that edible seaweeds like wakame, nori, and kelp are very rich in iodine.[8] The same source reports that average Japanese dietary intakes are estimated between 1,000 and 3,000 μg of iodine per day.[8] It also states that iodine-induced goiter and hypothyroidism are not uncommon in Japan and can be reversed by restricting seaweed intake.[8]

A 2005 BBC article states that Norman Tucker is the sole individual in the south west who earns a living from collecting seaweed.[9]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Reynolds, "Seaweed proteins are nutritionally valuable components in the human diet", The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2022-10-06, p. 855–861; Garcia-Vaquero, "Red and green macroalgae for fish and animal feed and human functional food development", Food Reviews International, 2016, p. 15–45; K.H. Wong, Peter C.K. Cheung, "Nutritional evaluation of some subtropical red and green seaweeds: Part I — proximate composition, amino acid profiles and some physico-chemical properties", Food Chemistry, 2000, p. 475–48; Garcia-Vaquero, en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Wiseman, John SAS Survival Handbook; Turner, "The North American Guide to Common Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms", Timber Press, 2009, p. 115–6; Turner, "The North American Guide to Common Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms", Timber Press, 2009, p. 115–6; "Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: clinical Dermatology", Saunders Elsevier, 2006; Turner, "The North American Guide to Common Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms", Timber Press, 2009, p. 115–6 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Spotlight presenters in a lather over laver", BBC, 2005-05-25 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Zaneveld, "The Utilization of Marine Algae in Tropical South and East Asia", Economic Botany, 1959, p. 89–131; "Seaweed as Human Food", Michael Guiry's Seaweed Site; Zaneveld, "The Utilization of Marine Algae in Tropical South and East Asia", Economic Botany, 1959, p. 89–131; "Kai Recipe's used by Kawhia Maori & Early Pioneers", Kawhia.maori.nz; Thurstan, "Aboriginal uses of seaweeds in temperate Australia: an archival assessment", Journal of Applied Phycology, 2018-01-23, p. 1821–1832 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Adriano, "'Gamet' sushi festival launched", The Manila Times, 21 December 2005; "Gamet", Museo Ilocos Norte, 28 May 2016; "Cagayan town passes seaweed protection law", The Manila Times, 15 December 2013; Zaneveld, "The Utilization of Marine Algae in Tropical South and East Asia", Economic Botany, 1959, p. 89–131 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: de Noceda, "Vocabulario de la lengua Tagala", Imprenta de la compañia de Jesus, 1754, p. 101, 215; de Mentrida, "Diccionario De La Lengua Bisaya, Hiligueina Y Haraya de la isla de Panay", En La Imprenta De D. Manuel Y De D. Felis Dayot, 1841, p. 380 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Edible seaweed" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Milman, "Feeding cows seaweed could cut their methane emissions by 82%, scientists say", The Guardian, 2021-03-18 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. "Micronutrient Information Center: Iodine", Oregon State University: Linus Pauling Institute, 2014-04-23. facts only, no text reused. lpi.oregonstate.edu
  9. "Spotlight presenters in a lather over laver", BBC, 2005-05-25. facts only, no text reused. bbc.co.uk

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Edible seaweed (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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