Wakame — Japan’s best loved seaweed
The most common seaweed in the Japanese diet
Being an island country, Japan has abundant supplies of fish and all kinds of seaweed, of which wakame is the best known.
In fact, almost everyone in Japan grows up eating this nutritious sea vegetable.
I’ll admit, wakame doesn’t look all that appetizing, but do give it a try! It works wonders to add texture and bring out the flavor of other ingredients.
A subtle culinary accent
Along with konbu (kelp), wakame is an ingredient that every Japanese cook always has to hand.
It tastes great fresh, and also comes in a dried version that is easy to store at room temperature.
Wakame is a great complement to any dish: it makes a wonderful addition to miso soup, and is delicious seasoned with vinegar too. I personally love to prepare wakame stewed with ginger.
Supports hair growth and weight loss
In Japan, wakame and other seaweeds have long been believed to be good for the hair, and now science has shown us why!
It turns out that the iodine in seaweed stimulates the thyroid, improving hair growth.
As an added bonus, seaweed is virtually calorie-free, making it the perfect healthy food for dieters!
Even compared to other seaweeds, wakame is particularly rich in dietary fiber, minerals, and EPA (a fatty acid generally found in fish).
And it also delivers plenty of useful minerals like iodine, a constituent of thyroid hormones, fucoidan, which supports the immune system, magnesium, calcium, and many more.
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