Serves 4
Dashi, a classic Japanese broth, is known for its deep umami flavor. Plant-based ingredients like seaweed, miso, and soy sauce possess that necessary intensity; real, traditional dashi is therefore made with kombu. Naturally, this book had to include at least one deliciously umami-rich dashi recipe. The broth is fantastic as a light meal or snack, delicious both hot and cold. Serve with some wakame and you have a perfect late-afternoon energy booster. You can also turn this broth into a meal by serving it with the carrots and the shiitake mushrooms you used when making it or by adding other types of vegetables, wakame, or pasta. It can also be served with braised leeks, onions, grilled tofu, roasted cashew nuts, and sesame seeds. You can also use the broth as a base for sauces and dressings. The nori crisps are a little bonus, on the house.
Broth
Sesame oil for sautéing
2 onions, coarsely chopped
1½ inch (4 cm) fresh ginger, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 carrots, cut into 1 cm cubes
8 cups (2 L) water
1.75 ounces (50 g) dried shiitake mushrooms
0.7 ounces (20 g) dried kombu strips
¼ cup (70 g) dark miso paste
3 tablespoons mirin
1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
Nori crisps
2 sheets dried nori
Sesame oil for toasting nori
White and/or black sesame seeds
Coarse sea salt
1. Preheat the oven to 320°F (160°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Heat a layer of sesame oil in a stockpot and sauté the onions until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger, garlic, and carrots. Sauté for about 5 minutes. Add 4 cups of water and the dried mushrooms and cook for about 30 minutes over low heat. Allow to simmer with the pot partially covered. After 30 minutes, add the kombu and cook over low heat for another 30 minutes.
3. While the broth is simmering, make the nori crisps. Shred or cut the nori sheets into pieces, brush with a little sesame oil, and sprinkle with the sesame seeds and some sea salt. Toast the sheets in the oven for about 5 minutes. Store in an airtight container or serve immediately in the broth.
4. When the broth is done, remove the kombu. Mix several tablespoons of hot soup in with the miso to make a paste and then add it to the soup. Add the mirin and a dash of soy sauce to the broth. (Add the soy sauce in small amounts while tasting carefully!) Thoroughly stir and let rest, allowing the soup to cool and the flavors to blend.
5. Strain the soup through a cheesecloth-lined sieve. Also strain the vegetables and herbs in cheesecloth and squeeze well. Make sure to collect all of the liquid. Now you have dashi!
Serves 4
This soup has a smooth and creamy texture. The hazelnuts add a nutty, slightly bitter touch, while the samphire gives it a hint of salt. Serve with a piece of toasted sourdough baguette dipped in Sailor’s Butter and a nice glass of red wine.
⅔ cup (90 g) unsalted hazelnuts
Olive oil for sautéing
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 cauliflower, chopped into small florets
2 garlic cloves, minced
5¼ cup (1.25 L) water
2 cubes vegetable bouillon
2.6 ounces (75 g) samphire, rinsed, any tough stems removed
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
Juice of ½ lemon
Fine sea salt, to taste
Extras
Nutritional yeast, optional
Everything Goes ’Weed Mix, optional
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the hazelnuts on top. Roast the hazelnuts in the oven about 12 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let rest.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the soup. Heat a generous splash of olive oil in a stockpot. Sauté the onion until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the cauliflower florets and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes. Pour in the water and stir in the bouillon. Bring the water to a boil and stir until the bouillon is completely dissolved. Partially cover the pan with the lid and let the soup simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes.
3. Prepare the samphire: Heat a splash of olive oil in a skillet. Sauté the samphire for 5 minutes or so. Remove from the heat and season with pepper.
4. Pour the broth into a blender or food processor along with the hazelnuts, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice (beware of splashes; the soup is hot). Pulse the soup until smooth and creamy. Alternatively, you can add the nutritional yeast and lemon juice to the stockpot and blend with an immersion blender.
5. Carefully taste and season with a pinch of sea salt. Serve the soup with the fried samphire and some extra nutritional yeast or—if you have it on hand—some of the Everything Goes ’Weed Mix.
Serves 4
Sea-based chowders are a New England staple. Now, vegans can enjoy this slightly sweet, perfectly salty treat, too. This chowder uses sweet and summery corn, and its creaminess comes from potatoes. The saltiness is courtesy of a true king of the sea: kombu. The shiitake bacon with its intense, savory flavor tops it all off.
Sea chowder
Olive oil for sautéing
1 large white onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small red chile pepper, seeded and minced
3½ cups (500 g) fresh corn kernels (from about 2 ears)
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 teaspoon thyme
2 bay leaves
5¼ cups (1.25 L) water
0.25 ounce (7 g) dried kombu
Fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Shiitake bacon
Olive oil for sautéing
7 ounces (200 g) shiitake mushrooms, wiped clean and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 heaping teaspoon smoked paprika (pimentón)
2 to 3 teaspoons maple syrup
Extras
Fresh herbs, to taste (dill weed, parsley, rosemary, cilantro, etc.)
1. To make the sea chowder, heat a splash of olive oil in a stockpot. Sauté the onion until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and the chili pepper and cook for 3 more minutes. Add the corn, potatoes, thyme, and bay leaves. Stir for a couple of minutes. Add the water and kombu. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer for 20 minutes, the pot partially covered with a lid.
2. To make the shiitake bacon, heat a splash of oil in a skillet and sauté the shiitakes until golden brown all around. Douse with the soy sauce and stir, allowing the shiitake mushrooms to fully absorb the liquid. Sprinkle with smoked paprika and the maple syrup. Stir thoroughly and allow the mushrooms to caramelize (this process goes quickly, so be careful). Remove from the heat.
3. Remove the kombu from the soup. Cook for another 5 minutes, uncovered. Remove from the heat. Scoop out the bay leaves. Puree the soup with a stand or immersion blender until completely smooth. Season with sea salt and pepper.
4. Serve in bowls together with the shiitake bacon and garnish with fresh herbs.
Serves 4
Besides being deliciously fresh and creamy, this soup is also terrifically healthy. The humble green pea is a powerhouse, and this combination of peas, fiber- and protein-rich sea lettuce, and avocado—the secret ingredient that lends this soup its creaminess—will make you feel big and strong.
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 medium white onions, finely chopped
2 cups (300 g) green peas, frozen or fresh
2 garlic cloves, minced
2½ cups (600 ml) water
1 cube vegetable bouillon
One 13.5-ounce (400 ml) can coconut milk
0.25 ounce (7 g) dried sea lettuce
2 avocados, sliced
3 tablespoons freshly chopped mint
Juice of 1 lime
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Extras
Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Coconut milk
Sea lettuce flakes
1. Heat the coconut oil in a stockpot. Sauté the onions until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the peas and garlic and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the water, bouillon cube, and coconut milk. Stir continuously until the bouillon cube has dissolved, and bring to a boil. Continue simmering for another 10 minutes over low heat, the pot partially covered with a lid.
2. Add the sea lettuce to the soup and remove from the heat. Add the avocados, mint, and lime juice. Puree the soup with an immersion blender until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Note: The soup already contains bouillon and seaweed, so taste carefully before you add any salt!
3. Serve with fresh mint leaves, a splash of coconut milk, and a few flakes of sea lettuce to garnish.
Serves 4
This recipe is inspired by a traditional fish soup from the French region of Brittany. Seaweed isn’t just a wonderful provider of umami; it’s also bursting with omega-3s. These essential fatty acids are one of the main reasons for including fish in our diet. Did you know that when replacing fish with seaweed in this recipe—essentially making a fish soup without fish—you’re receiving as much as you need of this must-have nutrient? The crispy fried tofu, oyster mushrooms, and oyster leaves, doused with white wine, make for a sumptuous soup. As an alternative to oyster leaves, we recommend sea aster (6 leaves). Serve with toasted sourdough bread and Sailor’s Butter.
2 beefsteak tomatoes
Olive oil for sautéing
2 onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, cubed
1 fennel bulb, julienned
2 garlic cloves, minced
¾ cup (150 g) dried red lentils
1 tablespoon lemon zest
5¼ cups (1.25 L) water
0.3 ounce (8 g) dried kombu
1 tablespoon dried thyme
7 ounces (200 g) smoked tofu, cubed
5 ounces (150 g) oyster mushrooms, sliced
5 oyster leaves, wiped clean
Splash of white wine
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Extras
Coconut milk
Fresh dill weed
Pomegranate seeds
1. Peel the tomatoes: Using a knife, carve an X in the bottoms of the tomatoes and dip them in boiling water for 10 to 15 seconds. Briefly let them rest, then blanch them in cold water (or an ice bath). Now you can easily peel off the skin using your fingers or a small paring knife. Chop the tomato flesh into cubes.
2. Heat a splash of olive oil in a stockpot. Sauté the onions until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Then add the tomatoes, carrots, fennel, garlic, red lentils, and lemon zest. Add the water, kombu, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and let simmer for about 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, heat a splash of oil in a skillet. Sauté the tofu and oyster mushrooms until golden brown. Add the oyster leaves and stir for about 3 minutes Add a splash of white wine. Over medium heat, allow the wine to be absorbed and the extra liquid to evaporate while stirring continuously. Season with salt and pepper. Note: The oyster leaves are themselves salty!
4. Remove the kombu from the soup after 20 minutes. Turn off the heat. Puree the soup with an immersion blender until smooth.
5. Serve the soup topped with the tofu and a dash of coconut milk. Garnish with some fresh dill and pomegranate seeds.
KATHY ANN MILLER is curator of algae at UC Berkeley’s University Herbarium. She caught the seaweed bug during an undergrad summer course in 1976 and has been collecting and researching native Californian seaweed ever since.
You’ve devoted over forty years to researching seaweed; what first interested you about them?
They’re the foundation species, the engineers that created their environment! I was immediately fascinated by their form, their otherworldliness; how seaweeds occupy space, how they reproduce; the efficiency with which they capture carbon. Their sheer dominance on earth is incredible. At first they seem static but in fact they move—they throw their spores out into the ocean. They’re intriguing, complex, and still mysterious.
As a phycologist, what are your thoughts on the growing interest in seaweed as a food source?
It’s wonderful to see more and more people becoming aware of the magnificent creatures growing in our oceans. Eating seaweed also ties in to a broader tendency toward eating lower on the food web. We’re moving away from eating animals and instead embracing plants.
Can you tell us about the herbarium?
Our herbarium started in 1895. I think the importance of comprehensive collections like ours is that they are treasure houses of history. These are actual specimens, some of them over a hundred years old, containing a wealth of information only now being revealed to us through modern technology such as DNA sequencing. We’re holding information about history—biodiversity and evolution—that will be immensely valuable to the future. We know, for instance, that when explorers sailed north on the Pacific, whole communities of plants and animals hitchhiked on their ships to the New World.
So seaweed as stowaways and storytellers—what can we learn from them?
Flexibility! Land creatures are rigid; they need a skeleton to support themselves in the air. In the ocean, resistance is futile. You need to be flexible. Seaweeds can be eaten, then they grow back. They can be battered, then they adapt. Because of this, they’ve been around for millions of years, through multiple ice ages and continental shifts. Yet many of them still have forms similar to those they evolved into long ago. They also live alongside other species like animals. They are role models of resilience, adaptability, and collaboration.
When I first started looking at seaweeds and glimpsed this other world, I felt so terrestrial! We tend to be so involved with our own species. It’s good to step away from our own perception of the world and see it from another species’ perspective. I often try to think like a weed, to see the world in a different way.
