Sea Lettuce’s versatility has resulted in it gaining traction as a functional food ingredient, nutritional supplement, and a source of nutraceutical extracts (particularly Ulvan). Some examples of product categories are listed below:
Powdered sea lettuce can be consumed directly in capsule form, or can be processed into a protein or superfood supplement. It can also be added to supplement formulations to provide complete nutrition and aid absorption.
Application Tip: Use as a nutritional supplement in capsule form or add to formulations to provide complete nutrition and aid absorption.
Form Factor: Powdered.
This is an emerging product category that involves creating antioxidant, hydrocolloid (ulvan), protein, and other liquid or powdered extracts of the functional compounds in sea lettuce. The extracts can then be directly added to nutritional supplements or functional foods.
Application Tip: Emerging category involving functional compound extracts.
Form Factor: Powdered, liquid.
Due to its high micronutrient, fiber, and protein levels, sea lettuce can be easily added to smoothies, fresh juices, or protein supplements as a superfood or nutrition enhancer. It’s analogous to spirulina, maca, or other similar superfood enhancers, but with the added benefit of a mild, highly palatable savory flavor that enhances baseline notes well.
Application Tip: Use as a superfood supplement in applications such as juices, smoothies, or protein supplements.
Form Factor: Powdered, flaked.
Sea Lettuce can be incorporated as a nutrition enhancer into processed or packaged foods such as baked goods, chips, crackers, pasta, instant soups, instant noodles, or snack foods. It can be easily incorporated into doughs or batters with minimal change to palatability, texture, or color and also incorporated into seasoning blends for snack foods. The main draw here is its micronutrient content, protein content, and digestibility.
Application Tip: Use as a nutrition enhancer with minimal changes to palatability, texture, or color in dry foods and baked goods.
Form Factor: Powdered.
Sea Lettuce can be used in fresh, frozen, whole dried, or flaked forms as an ingredient in a range of food applications, specifically salads, soups, fried or baked snacks, or as an analog for leafy green vegetables. It has traditionally been added to soups and seaweed salad in Japan and Korea, and also blended with other seaweeds such as nori to make sheets for sushi and as seaweed snacks. In this application, sea lettuce adds a unique texture and flavor that enhances the nutrition and savory flavor of a variety of dishes.
Application Tip: Use as a whole ingredient for making soups, seaweed salad, baked or fried seaweed snacks, and as a leafy green vegetable.
Form Factor: Whole dried, fresh, frozen, flaked.
Sea Lettuce adds a subtle, savory ocean and vegetable flavor to a variety of snacks and fried foods when added as a seasoning. Traditionally, it’s used as a seasoning for fried foods like Takoyaki or Okonomiyaki in Japan, where it is also valued for its bright color to provide contrast. Additionally, it’s used as the base for seasoning blends such as furikake, since it provides bulk, flavor, and nutrition without overwhelming the other ingredients.
Application Tip: Use as a base for seasoning blends to add color, nutrition, and flavor enhancement.
Form Factor: Powdered, flaked.
Sea Lettuce is gaining traction as an ingredient for the following applications due to its nutritional and flavor profile:
Sea Lettuce is typically available in whole dried, flaked, and powdered formats, making it easy to incorporate into a wide range of food and nutraceutical products. Frozen, fermented, and liquid extracts are not available widely.
The dosage of sea lettuce varies depending on the intended application but typically ranges from 5 - 10g per serving of final product. It is not recommended to consume more than 25g daily due to the risk of excess iodine consumption.
Sea Lettuce is relatively stable once processed and stored in a cool, dark, and dry environment. The flavor is typically mild and vegetal, with some salty and briny notes, and as such can be easily incorporated into a wide range of taste profiles. No special consideration, such as for kelp, needs to be given in this regard.
Sea Lettuce is typically low in lipids and fat-soluble vitamins. For complete nutrition, pairing with essential fatty acids such as omega-3 is something to keep in mind.
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