Description

This wakame is hand harvested from January to the end of April by farmers in boats using long poles with blades attached to cut the fronds loose from the ocean bottom. Long rakes are used to gather the wakame as it floats to the surface. The wakame is taken ashore, washed, hung on ropes and left to sun dry before trimming, grading and packaging. Unlike most commercial wakame, Koyo Wakame is not treated with softening agents such as enzymes or monosodium glutamate (MSG).

Wakame Undaria pinnatifida is a species of brown algae with long, delicate leaves that resemble feathers. Its size and tenderness varies depending on where it grows as temperature and ocean conditions create a variety of plants. Wakame first became known in the United States as the green in Miso soup, and is one of the most popular sea vegetables in Japan and North America today. Koyo Wakame is quickly restored to tenderness when soaked and is a favorite in soups, stews, marinated dishes, and salads.

Koyo Wakame is low calorie, fat and cholesterol free, and a good source of magnesium. Like kombu and other brown algae, wakame contains glutamine, a sweet amino acid that acts as a flavor enhancer and softening agent when cooked with other foods. Its alginic acid, a polysaccharide similar to pectin found in land plants, protects the plant from bacteria and fungi. Scientific research conducted by McGill University, in Canada demonstrated that ‘alginic acid binds with heavy metals in the body, from all sources, renders them insoluble and causes them to be eliminated.’