Speaking of seaweed, is it possible that "seaweed egg flower soup" will immediately flash in your mind? Since it is called seaweed, it should be purple, but careful people will find that the seaweed in the prepared seaweed soup is often green.
Did you buy fake seaweed? In fact, about seaweed, people still have some misunderstandings about it.
01
Dried seaweed can't be torn, made of plastic?
No, the characteristics of seaweed are just that!
I still remember seeing a video that said that the seaweed that could not be torn by hand was fake seaweed, which was made of plastic.
Image source: Video screenshot
In fact, the reason why seaweed is so "firm" is affected by the harvest period.
Studies have shown that although the effect of harvesting period on the toughness of seaweed is not significant, the hardness and elasticity will increase with the delay of harvesting period. [1]
In other words, seaweed, which is rich in polysaccharide substances such as gums, will become smooth and flexible on the surface after harvesting and drying. The later the harvest time, the more "firm" the seaweed, the stronger the toughness, and the less likely it is to tear. Therefore, it cannot be assumed that seaweed is made of plastic.
02
What is the relationship between seaweed and seaweed?
The ingredients for seaweed are almost all "seaweed"!
Seaweed is a popular snack, whether adults or children, because of its delicious taste and crispy texture over the "mouth" not to forget.
But, do you know what nori seaweed is made of? If you don't look at the ingredient list, many people will think that seaweed is seaweed, what else can it be made? However, if you look at the ingredient list, you will find that most seaweed is made of "seaweed".
In fact, seaweed is also a kind of seaweed, nori is generally divided into two kinds of "striped laver" and "altar laver", most of which are processed with striped seaweed, such as the following picture.
Image source: E-commerce screenshot
Some people may ask: What is the altar seaweed like? It is like this in the picture below, and the seaweed bought by the general family from supermarkets and wet markets looks like this, which is very common.
Figureworm creative
03
Why is the seaweed in the soup green?
It is related to the change of phycorubin!
The color of seaweed is the most likely place for it to attract rumors. Before cooking, seaweed is generally purple, even purple black, but after cooking, many people will find that seaweed turns green. People who don't understand the truth will think that they bought fake seaweed, but they are not.
The reason why nori is purple is because dried seaweed is rich in "algalene", algalus is unstable in nature, will decompose in case of heat, and after decomposition, the chlorophyll and lutein in it will become the main coloring substance, and nori will therefore "turn from purple to green".
This color shift is normal, don't worry. However, on the other hand, if you find that the prepared seaweed soup has turned purple, it is really a problem to buy the seaweed!
04
What is the nutrition of seaweed?
The nutrition of seaweed is still relatively rich, protein, vitamins, minerals, fat, dietary fiber, etc., of which fat is mainly unsaturated fatty acids [2].
The content of the mineral iron in dried seaweed is more prominent, 54.9mg/100g[3], if you make a seaweed egg flower soup, it takes about 2g to 5g of dried seaweed (the figure below is 2g of dried seaweed), if calculated according to 5g, the iron that can be ingested is 2.7mg, which is equivalent to the content of spinach.
Image source: Original image
In addition, the study also mentioned that seaweed has anti-aging and lipid-lowering health effects.
Some people say that dried seaweed is rich in dietary fiber. This is true from the data point of view - 21.6g/100g[3], but considering that the amount eaten per time is relatively small, it is not an advantage.
05
How to choose a good seaweed?
It can be compared from the following two levels of description[4]:
High quality seaweed:
(1) Appearance: shiny, thin, purple brown or purple red, no impurities
(2) Odor: Fragrant aroma, soft taste
Substitial seaweed:
(1) Poor gloss, uneven thickness of the sheet, red and mixed with green
(2) Odor: poor aroma and taste, many impurities, sediment.
Image source: Original pictures of scientific debunking rumors
bibliography:
Xuan Shifen, Zhu Yukang, Sun Nan, et al. Sensory quality and protein composition analysis of seaweed at different harvesting periods[J]. Science and Technology of Food Industry, 2020(14).
Zhang Quanbin, Zhao Tingting, Qi Huimin, et al. An Overview of the Study on the Nutritional Value of Seaweed[J].Marine Sciences,2005,29(2):69-72. DOI:10.3969/j.issn.1000-3096.2005.02.014.
Yang Yuexin. Chinese Nutrition Facts List 6th Edition. Peking University Medical Press: Beijing, 2019.
Zhou Xiaoyan. Culinary Technology. China Textile Publishing House. 1st edition. 2008.7
This article was first published on the "Scientific Rumors Debunking Platform"
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