Dulse (Palmaria palmata) is a red seaweed (actually an algae) from the Atlantic that is "tasty and nutritious," to be cliche. When eaten unwashed and raw, it has a salty taste, with a vague vegetable taste; it does not taste as bitter as most green vegetables, though, in part probably because of the salty taste (it can also be cooked, of course, though I have yet to actually try that, since it is so good raw; dulse is one of the few seweeds that can be eaten raw). It is high in several important nutrients: fiber (9% RDA per serving), iron (19%), Vitamin B6 (42%), Vitamin B12 (23%), iodine (243%). Iron can be hard to get as a vegetarian, especially one who dislikes vegetables, and B12 is almost impossible to get as a vegan, so this is a good supplement for vegan and vegetarian diets, like mine. The dulse they sell here (at Bloomingfoods) is from Maine Coast Sea Vegetables. Dulse is unfortunately rather expensive; it costs me around $4 for 2 ounces, but it does go a long way too, and in my case, it is definitely worth it for its dietary advantages.
What Maine Coast Sea Vegetables sells as Kelp is also known as kombu. Strictly speaking it should be cooked, though, I used to cheat and eat it raw. You do have to be careful with it that way though - you can get sick, I suppose, and it is, ahem, very chewy. I am sure it would be good cooked properly though. Frying, is the way to go, I suspect. It is used in a lot of recipes as a tenderizer, so it has uses other than just plain eating, but what's the fun of that?
Try dulse; you will like it.
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