Eat Your Sea Veggies

Arame is what I like to call the Sea's Vermicelli. I bet it would be delicious with a chunky garlic tomato sauce & ribbons of fresh basil. If experimenting with seaweed in the kitchen is new to you, Arame is a great introduction to the palate. It's much more mild than most seaweeds and blends well with other flavors. Plus it's shredded which makes it noodle-like and easier to slurp down!

If I haven't convinced you to play with it yet. Then just keep in mind that it is packed full of minerals and nutrients. A rich source of calcium, iron, iodine, zinc, Vitamin A and cancer fighting Lignans.

My dear friend Diana and I have been making Real Food Daily our nourishing stopover after our Sunday hikes. Founder and Chef, Ann Gentry has a scrumptious Sea Vegetable side. It's perfect paired with Steamed Toasted Millet & Quinoa and steamed leafy greens.

For lunch today I decided to recreate her masterpiece as a side to my Ginger-Lemongrass Steamed Salmon. I simmered both millet & quinoa together, steamed kale, sauteed arame & created a bright tart lemon ginger oil to drizzle over the top of it all!


Arame Saute
Serves 2-4

1/2 ounce dried arame
1 T toasted sesame oil
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced into half-moons
2 carrots, peeled & julienned
3 T tamari
1 T brown rice vinegar
1/8 C freshly squeezed lemon juice (1/2 a lemon)
1 scallion, green tips only, thinly sliced
small handful of cilantro, coarsley chopped
1 T toasted sesame seeds

Place the arame in a strainer and rinse well (pulling out any debris or sandy bits). Soak in a medium bowl of cool water for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, fill a saute pan with the sesame oil and place over a medium flame. Saute the onions until tender and beginning to brown, about 6-10 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low and add the arame, carrots, tamari, brown rice vinegar and lemon juice, saute for 5 minutes. Shut off heat, toss with scallions, cilantro and toasted sesame seeds.

Serve as is or as a side with Ginger-Lemongrass Steamed Salmon drizzled with Lemon Ginger Oil.



Ginger-Lemongrass Steamed Salmon drizzled with Lemon Ginger Oil
2 Servings

12 ounces Wild Salmon
1/2 lime, thinly sliced
1/2" nub of ginger, thinly sliced
lemongrass stalk, thinly sliced
sprinkling of your favorite sea salt

I use a bamboo steamer, but any steamer will do. Bring a pot of water to a boil, making sure that the circumference of the steamer fits snugly over the top of the pot. Cover the bottom-center of the steamer with lime slices, ginger slices and lemongrass slices. Place the salmon over top and sprinkle with sea salt. Steam for 8-10 minutes or until cooked through.
Drizzle with Lemon Ginger Oil & serve with Arame Saute.

Lemon Ginger Oil
1T fresh ginger, minced
1/8 C fresh lemon juice, about 1/2 juicy lemon
1 t tamari
small handful of cilantro
1 scallion, green tips only
3 ounces (= 1/4C + 1/8C) extra virgin olive oil

Using a food processor. Combine all of the ingredients except for the evoo. Puree until smooth. With the processor running slowly pour in the extra virgin olive oil.
Drizzle over salmon or toss with steamed grains, even drizzle on the Arame Saute for more flavor!!