The ocean covers 71% of the Earth and contains 80% of all the living organisms. It’s hard to believe that I’ve gone this long without discussing fishing (see what I did here?) for nutrients in its depths.

The Pacific Ocean is frigid most of the year. Even in the middle of the summer, sliding in without experiencing a quick loss of breath isn’t human. Once you’ve taken that plunge, however, you feel the undeniable benefits. Step out of the water and you’ll feel refreshed, invigorated, and nicely salted. It brightens up any day. The grub materializing from this majestic place can enrich our lives and our diet.

I’ve spoken on many of the wonderful veggies grown on our land, but it’s time to discuss all of the vitamin-rich plant life that needs no watering. Welcome to our homes, seaweed.

I get it, new and foreign foods can be intimidating and overwhelming. Staying open-minded and (brace yourself, made up word coming) open-palated can lead to ethereal experiences. As a bonus, we address variety and acquire new delivery vehicles of minerals and vitamins. From Time Magazine:

Research is starting to confirm that seaweed does indeed contain a wide variety of vitamins and nutrients that could prevent disease. A 2011 study published in the American Chemical Society’s Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry reviewed 100 studies on the health benefits of seaweed and reported that some of the proteins in seaweed could serve as better sources of bioactive peptides than those in milk products. These reduce blood pressure, and boost heart health.

There are several different varieties of edible seaweed, most of which contain complete proteins and high amounts of fiber. You’ll usually find three types: brown (kelp and wakame, the seaweed used in miso soup), red and green. The super dynamite roll you washed down with Kirin Light may have contained all three.

In its snacking or wrapping paper form, it’s known as nori. Thank goodness for us package ripping consumers, it’s conveniently available in neat little boxes on grocery store shelves everywhere. You don’t even need to develop talent for rolling sushi at home to use it. Light, crunchy, salty and spicy, this version is phenomenal and contains only seaweed, olive oil, sea salt and organic, ground chipotle.

If you have a chip addiction, I promise these sheets will satisfy as you manage rehab. You remember those nicotine patches, right? Wait, that’s a bad analogy. At only 16 calories per package though, you’ll get that beach body you’ve always wanted. (Hold on, did I just invent the seaweed diet? Note to self: call publisher.)

I hate to bring this up, because it feels like a buzz kill, but I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t remind you that by the time most seaweed lands in your mouth and dissolves on your tongue, you’ll be ingesting a processed food. hebrideanseaweed.co.uk, for what it’s worth, suggests it retains its nutrients:

Following arrival at the processing facility the raw seaweed is gently dried in a tunnel drier and then milled to the customer’s specification. The modern machinery used allows the operators to control and monitor the process ensuring that the dried seaweed retains its original goodness so that only high quality finished products are produced.

To minimize the processing, incorporate some raw kelp into your soups or eat it as a stand-alone salad. Not good enough for you? Fine, I’ll be the guinea pig. Next time I’m out there, I’ll figure out a way to pull some directly from the ocean, sprinkle some spices on it and throw it down.

Back and forth we go,

Kap