Tips on Working with Dried Seaweed
Lise
Today we're going to do a few things with seaweed.
Why?
Because seaweed is chock full of fabulous nutrients that can be consumed or absorbed (or both). In short, they're great for skincare and overall health.
Are you wrinkling your nose a bit about the smell/taste of seaweed? Well, stick with me and discover a few ways to get seaweed's benefits without any nose wrinkling.
In this post, I am working with purchased dried (wakame) seaweed, but you could use any other dried seaweed.
While I am waiting for my lab to finish being set up (and because a good part of my equipment and ingredients are still stacked in boxes), we're working with ordinary kitchen equipment in a regular kitchen.
If you have never worked with dried wakame seaweed, I can reveal that it is pretty gosh darn hard. The instructions on the package are to 'immerse the seaweed in water for about 10 minutes to reconstitute' before using in dishes. And that would be fine if I were planning on cooking, but I want to create a powder to use a facial cleanser, so some ingredient processing is in order.
If life was perfect, I could pull out one of my grinders or mortar and pestle and start pulverising, but most of my equipment is momentarily packed and stacked, so the seaweed is going into a food chopper.
Using a Chopper Instead of a Grinder
Depending on the material, there can be a big difference between the results a chopper and a grinder produce. If your chopper doesn't quite measure up as a grinder (hint- they rarely do), then pull out a fine meshed sieve and bowl.
When the chopper has done its best, sift the contents, then return the lumpier bits to the machine and have another go. This can be repeated as many times as needed to get your desired result.
Admittedly this is somewhat more time consuming than if you have a proper grinder, but it is doable - especially if it is your only option.
Sifting Tip
While passing the material through the sieve, use the edge of a spoon to 'scrape' the seaweed against the sieve. This will push/coax the finer bits through the mesh faster. I find this little spoon trick more useful than shaking the sieve to speed the process, but this may be because I tend to spill more when I use the shaking method.
Leftover Lumpy Bits
Even though I optimistically set out to create a perfect powder with no lumpy bits, that didn't even come close to happening.
What to do with the leftovers? Save them and use them in an invigorating foot bath (Find one here) or pop them into a hand-sized muslin bag (or similar), tie shut, and pop the bag into the bath for a luxurious seaweed at home spa bath with super easy cleanup.
Seaweed Honey Cleanser
At the top of this post is a picture of what I used my seaweed powder for: a self preserving honey cleanser. You can see the little seaweed flecks in the cleanser (which turned out beautifully and will definitely be repeated when this batch is finished). I also added a reconstituted bit of seaweed on the top right to show you what those little black lumps turn into when they meet water.
Nutritious Cleanup Tips
Here's my chopper after I finished using it – coated with a fine powdery layer of seaweed.
Goodness knows I've cleaned up my share of grinders/choppers after use and depending on the material, there are a few options:
Rinsing with (soap and) water, then drying
Removing as much as possible with soft brush, then wiping clean (or rinsing, washing and drying)
Capturing powder into another material (such as salt or sugar) then washing and drying
In this particular case, the powder is a nutritious food with a salty sea taste.
Hmmm - ingredient inspiration moment!
Shall we create our very own seaweed salt? Yes please, and here's how easy it is.
Pop a couple of tablespoons of your fave coarse sea salt into the chopper.
Pop lid on
Shake, rattle and roll the container around (by hand - no electricity necessary!), The powder will be picked up by the salt and not only make the final cleanup of the chopper easier, but you get a portion of delicious, nutritious seaweed salt to season your fave dishes. My fave use of this salt is in a good olive oil along with a bit of chopped fresh rosemary and served up as a dipping oil
Enjoy your seaweed!
Do Tell
Do you have a multifunctional favourite ingredient that you use in both your cosmetics and cooking? Please feel free to share in a comment below.
PS: The self preserving honey cleanser I made with my seaweed powder was created using the guidelines in both of these books (which are available at a bundle price).
