CUCUMBER AND WAKAME SALAD
Cucumber and Wakame salad
This is a great way to create a nutrient-rich sea vegetable combined with refreshing, crunchy cucumber in a tasty and satisfying salad. Wakame is a good source of iodine, which is essential to thyroid function and the production of thyroid hormones and it also contains many other essential vitamins and minerals. It has a mild, almost sweet taste, and so is a good sea vegetable for those who may not like the stronger tastes of some other varieties.
Ingredients
- 20 grams of wakame sea vegetable
- 1 cucumber
- ½ tsp sea salt
- Zest and juice of half a lemon
- 1 Tbs brown rice vinegar
Instructions
- Soak the wakame in water for 20 mins, until soft.
- Meanwhile, score the skin of the whole cucumber lengthways with a fork to pierce the skin all over. Slice the cucumber medium finely and place on a large plate. Sprinkle with the sea salt, making sure that all the pieces are covered with it. Put a second plate on top of the cucumbers and add a weight. Leave for 20-30 mins (turning occasionally)
- While the cucumber is pressing, take the wakame out of the soaking water and squeeze any excess water from it. (Save the water to use in soup.) On a cutting board, separate the fronds of the wakame from the main rib and cut each into bite size pieces. Any tough central ribs can be put to one side and used in another dish.
- When the cucumber pieces are sufficiently pressed (they will become softer, brighter green, and liquid will have come out) rinse them briefly under cold water and mix together with the wakame pieces, adding the lemon zest and juice.
- Sprinkle with a few toasted sesame seeds (optional) to serve.