You must rinse and soak the seaweed according to the recipe, and I also made sure to boil the seaweed knots as directed by my package instructions too. This step filled my house with a briny scent of ocean water, not unlike steaming a big pot of clams, so it was sort of like getting immersed in a little bit of summer even though the icy fist of winter has been throttling us since the beginning of December here in upstate New York. The seaweed knots expanded a great deal and of course, got a softer texture, though they were still fairly springy and chewy. One needs good, strong choppers for this dish.
The volume of my 300 gram package of salted seaweed grew exponentially after the boiling water bath, and while Dan and I enjoyed this refreshing Japanese-flavored salad, we were satisfied with eating two or three knots at a clip and so this seaweed salad lasted well over a week in our refrigerator, and we ended up getting a little sick of having it around.
The final verdict: We might make this recipe again if we were going to bring it to a party of appreciative gourmets, but we have a limited desire to eat a whole mound of it. The knots are really quite jaunty and it makes a lovely presentation, but it ended up being too much of a good thing for our two tummies (the kids wouldn't even try a nibble, though they love nori and my Sushi Salad).
I'm going to send my leftovers over to Laurie at Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska, this week's host of Weekend Herb Blogging, the popular foodie blog event that celebrates vegetables, fruits and herbs. Weekend Herb Blogging was started by Kalyn's Kitchen and is now headquartered by Haalo at Cook (Almost) Anything At Least Once. Hop on over to see Laurie after Sunday's deadline to see what other interesting recipes people have contributed in the weekly WHB roundup.
Off to play with some other exotic edibles...
11 comments:
I've had seaweed salad like this before. In southeast asia they like to eat a lot of this. They put vinegar or lime and freshly cut tomatoes. It is eaten with rice and something fried, such as tofu or fried eggplant or fried spring rolls.
It is good that way.
Some people put it in soups with miso, shallots and mushrooms.
When you boil it for a long time it gets softer and easier to eat.
:)
I bought a seaweed salad not that long ago. It was julienned though and sesame flavoured. It was the same. The first 3 or 4 bites were wonderful but after that there was something about it that I just couldn't eat any more of it. It sat in the fridge too while I pecked at it for almost a week.
It looks really pretty.
this is definitely an acquired taste!
Good for you...at least you gave it a try! It's fun to try different things.
thanks rachel! my son loves nut thins too--he has to wait a few years for his redbridge though.:)
How cool is that?? Seaweed knots, I love it! My son and I love all manner of "sea vegetables." I will have to try to get some of these babies and try out your recipe.
:) Kareh
Seaweeds are really healthy food! I am glad you are able to enjoy them. We do not usually cook a whole pack. Just a fourth of it at a time. The uncooked seaweed can keep for a long time since they are dried. :)
The knots look really cute and I like the deep green color.
I have to look for these! They are right up my alley. The knot shape is so interesting. Were they chewy?
Thanks everyone for your comments and Nani and Ning, I appreciate your suggestions. I think I would like to try these again, and will definitely cook them longer to soften them up more. Yes, Maggie, they were VERY chewy!
Hi, Rachel, I came to you via Laurie's WHB roundup. I was really intrigued by your photo. Kudos to you on trying something so new to you -- I grew up eating these seaweed knots, but only after long stewing until they are quite soft. It's definitely an acquired taste! : ) If you'd like to try them again in a traditional Okinawan dish with pork and other veggies, I have a recipe for that on my site -- it's the first one I ever posted! I'll be back to check out some of your other exotic edible experiments (I love doing that too!)
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