Even before I know of its health benefits, I have always loved to eat seaweed. My mother is a big fan of seaweed and she knows how to prepare it well so all the children in the family love seaweed too. Seaweed is said to be the most nutritious plant food in the planet. It contains all the trace minerals that we need. It’s just so ironic that I, who love to eat seaweed had a nodular goiter before. Seaweed is so rich in iodine which is very crucial in helping regulate our thyroid function. It’s only lately that I learned that goiter is rarely caused by lack of iodine in the diet. In my case, it’s more of a genetic thing. My mother used to have a nodule like mine before, so tiny and just went away on its own.
The seaweed that we eat in the Philippines are different from what the Japanese restaurants are serving although just the same, they all taste and smell of seawater. All the seaweeds that I know of, need blanching before you season them and turn them into a salad.
Seaweed salad with carrots and cucumber
Today I made my first Japanese style seaweed salad. I never miss to order this every time we go to a Japanese restaurant. I always love this as a side dish. I made mine from dried wakame seaweed and I just followed the recipe for the seasoning that I got from the internet. It turned out really nice. My husband loved it too. From now on, dried seaweed is going to be a staple in my pantry.