Because fish aren't the only, well, fish in the sea...
A staple in Asian diets since ancient times, seaweeds are among the healthiest foods on the planet, packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. And now we know they're great for the waistline, too: A 2010 study found the algae can reduce our rate of fat absorption by 75 percent, thanks to its inhibitory effect on a digestive enzyme called lipase. (Scientists at Newcastle University are about to begin clinical trials on a "wonder bread" made with alginate fibers and designed to speed weight loss.) Here are four briny plants to sample, all available at Whole Foods or edenfoods.com.
Wakame
(Undaria pinnatifida)
Pappardella-like leaves with a salty-sweet zest
Nutrition Perks Nutritionist Gillian McKeith, PhD, author of the You Are What You
Eat Cookbook, calls wakame the woman's seaweed because it is loaded with
osteoporosis-preventing calcium and magnesium and acts as a diuretic
(which helps reduce bloating). Wakame's pigment, fucoxanthin, is known
to improve insulin resistance, and a 2010 animal study found that
fucoxanthin burns fatty tissue.
Kitchen Prep Soak the leaves in cold water until tender, then enjoy them in a
cucumber salad, dressed with rice vinegar, sesame oil, and soy sauce. To
make miso soup, add wakame, tofu, and a few tablespoons of miso paste to
a kombu stock (see below).
Nori
(Porphyra species)
Papery sheets with a mild earthy
taste
Nutritional Perks Among the marine flora, nori is one of the richest in protein (up to
50 percent of the plant's dry weight), and one sheet has as much fiber
as a cup of raw spinach and more omega-3 fatty acids than a cup of
avocado. Nori contains vitamins C (a potent antioxidant) and B12
(crucial for cognitive function) and the compound taurine, which helps
control cholesterol.
Kitchen Prep For a snack, toast strips of nori in the oven at low heat. Or cover
a sheet with cooked brown rice; add a layer of sliced carrots, celery,
or avocado, and a dash of wasabi. Roll it up and dip in a sauce of
tamari, toasted-sesame oil, ginger, and rice vinegar.
Kombu
(Laminaria japonica)
Leafy kelp with a full-bodied, savory flavor
Nutrition Perks Kombu is prized as a source of iodine, which is needed to produce
the two key thyroid hormones that control metabolism. The kelp is also
rich in fucoidan, a phytochemical that acts as an anticoagulant; a 2011
study found that kombu contains properties that stop clots from forming
in blood vessels—which may make it a promising subject for
cardiovascular research.
Kitchen Prep To make a flavorful broth called dashi (the chicken stock of Japan),
simmer a strip of dried kombu in water for five minutes. And next time
you cook beans, throw a kombu leaf in
the pot; the plant's glutamic acid renders the beans more easily
digestible and less gassy.
Nutritional Perks Arame provides a good amount of potassium, a mineral known among
athletes for preventing muscle cramps. Research has shown that arame has
antiviral properties, too, and even an antiobesity effect: In a 2010
experiment, researchers discovered that mice on a high-fat diet
experienced less weight gain when their food was supplemented with arame
powder.
