Seaweed question

[Petenshber]

I had a great lunch at a restaurant but one thing that confused me was that there was a side dish that i was told is seaweed, but i've never seen seaweed like it before, it was clear, stringy and kind of uneven (it looked a little like sauerkraut), and it had a crisp texture kind of like bean sprouts, i probably sound like i'm complaining but it was very good, i think it had vinegar sprinkled on it.

I would very much appreciate if someone could explain what kind of seaweed it is or if it is infact seaweed. Thank you.

 

[undrentide]

Was the "seaweed" you had like the above photos?
If so, it is ﾅｽ窶ｦﾅ?ﾂｦ窶弖 ito-kanten, string type kanten.
Kanten is a product made from a seaweed called tengusa (Gelidium elegans).
http://www003.upp.so-net.ne.jp/isohaku/0224tengusamoku.html

Kanten is like gelatin though texture is more stiff. It is available in many different forms, shred (itokanten), stick (boukanten) also in powder. We use it for various cooking, after being dessolved in water and boiled. Itokanten can be eaten as salad as well - just soaked in water for a while. It has nice texture, I like it.

 

[Goldiegirl]

I think I had the same seaweed. It didn't look like the picture above, it looked more like clear chow mein noodles...or really thin rice noodles? Does that sound familiar? It was very crisp and it looked very beautiful as well...oh it tastes great too!

 

[undrentide]

Goldiegirl, I think what you had is not itokanten, it sounds like ﾂ春窶ｰJ harusame.
It is made from bean starch, not seaweed.

 

[Goldiegirl]

I honestly can't say for sure! Thanks though...I'll see if someone who was with me at dinner that night can tell me. I had different food from everyone else because I am a vegetarian! Maybe someone will remember! Oh it didn't look like the picture. It was served plain with some type of flavored liquid and it was piled like a little haystack and it was not sticky in any way, each strand was seperate. Maybe that could help you tell me what I ate!!

 

[Petenshber]

Yes i think that's it, the picture with the white plate is difficult to make out details in but the one with the chop sticks is easier to see and i think that's what i had, it was very good. Thanks Undrentide.

 

[bezz]

マロニー

Goldiegirl, I think what you had is not itokanten, it sounds like 春雨 harusame

There is a patented product called Malony that is "improved harusame," not "dissolving" in hot water, absorbing broth better. It is made from potato and corn starch, best for sukiyaki.

 

[pipokun]

I think it would be a jellyfish. It has a good & crisp texture.

 

[Goldiegirl]

pipokun, I think you are right! I asked and everyone at dinner said that they were suprised to see me eat it as I usually don't eat fish/meat. Can I say that now it makes me feel sick to my stomach...it's a delayed reaction...or I am in shock. My fiance say said right from the start that it was jellyfish, but I didn't believe him. It did taste really good, very crisp...it kind of popped when you bite into it....Maybe if no one tells me what I am eating, I will be able to eat a lot more Japanese food than I originally thought!

 

[bezz]

葛切り

Another starch-based transparent "noodle" is kudzu-kiri (mostly for sweets) sometimes seen in savory hotpots to replace harusame.


Pictures

 

[bezz]

しらたき

Can't forget shirataki, thin white "noodle" just like harusame, made from devil's tongue root instead.
Supposedly very healthy since it virtually has zero calorie (humans cannot digest glucomannan "starch.")

Place meat separate, at the other end of shirataki in the hotpot, since calcium/potassium added to make konnyaku would make meat chewy.