Cooking with KELP

Kelp and other seaweeds bring a salty, metallic taste to your cooking at the same time as packing a nutritious punch. Kelp is rich in healing antioxidants and iodine but as far as cooking goes, it really depends on what form you are using. Dried seaweed makes wonderful stocks while fresh seaweed can be cooked and served alongside a seafood dish or in a soup. In Australia we are not accustomed to cooking with kelp and other seaweeds, so here are some tasty ideas to bring the healing power of these foods into your diet such as our: kelp power bowl; kelp noodle salad; seafood spaghetti with kombu; kelp super snacks; kelp bread; kelp vegan pad thai; and miso honey baked salmon topped with seaweed salad.

Seafood Spaghetti with Kombu DF

Recipe / Lisa Holmen

This seafood pasta is complemented beautifully by the addition of kombu, which provides salty notes to the dish. Although ground kombu can be used, you can also add a pinch of finely chopped kombu to the frying pan when adding the garlic. You can find kombu at your local Asian grocer.

Serves: 4

400g dried spaghetti

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, finely diced

300g seafood marinara mix

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp dried kombu, ground

1 chilli, deseeded and finely sliced

200mL dry white wine

1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1. Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente or according to packet instructions.

2. While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan on medium heat then add the onion and cook for 3-4 mins until softened.

3. Add the seafood mix, garlic, kombu, chilli and wine and cook for a few mins until the seafood is cooked through.

4. Add the pasta and toss. Garnish with parsley and an extra drizzle of oil to serve.

Miso Soup GF

Recipe / Lisa Holmen

It's surprisingly easy to make miso soup at home. First you need the dashi, a basic stock used in Japanese cooking, which is made by boiling kombu (dried kelp) with dried bonito (fish). Miso soup is a beautiful accompaniment to a Japanese meal with a bowl of steamed rice. Make sure to take the kombu out of the dashi before it boils otherwise, the stock may become bitter.

Serves: 4

Dashi

1L water

15g dried bonito flakes (katsuobushi)

15g dried kombu

Miso Soup

4 cups dashi

1 sheet nori, cut into rectangles

4 tbsp white miso

1/2 cup spring onions, chopped

1/4 cup silken tofu