Where to buy algae & seaweeds products on the internet
Internet natural food stores where you can buy sea greens products directly online. The USA-based stores have a wider selection. They all ship internationally and often have special offers.
A tip: if you use the search box, enter specific sea greens, like kelp, agar agar, spirulina, chlorella.
IN USA
IN UK
Kanten, or agar agar
Kanten, agar-agar or agar (Gelidiella acerosa), produced from several species of red sea vegetables, is ususally sold as a light grey powder
or as sun-dried flakes.
Agar agar can be a weight loss tool. It is a rich source of vitamins, minerals and iodine, it adds bulk to meals without increasing calories, and so helps to curb appetite. That is, the two most common weight-loss methods without ingestion of artificial substances are to eat as little as possible, which is very difficult to do, or to use as many calorie-free ingredients for cooking as possible so that hunger is satiated. The Japanese have been using the second method for centuries, and, as a consequence, only 5 percent of Japanese are overweight compared to more than 50 percent of Americans. Calorie-free cooking ingredients include mushrooms and sea vegetables, which the Japanese eat in large quantities. Agar helps the body eliminate bad cholesterol, as more than 70 percent of its weight is dietary fiber.
It is a good substitute to animal gelatine as a gelling agent to make sweet and savoury jellies and moulds, but it has stronger setting properties and, unlike gelatine which requires refrigeration to set, it will set at room temperature after about an hour, although it is advisable to store dishes gelled with agar agar in the fridge as it is a high protein food.
For a firm jelly, either follow the directions on the packet, or add 2 teaspoons of agar powder (or 2 tablespoons of flakes) to 1 pint / 600 ml of liquid: you can use water, vegetable stock, or vegetable or fruit juice. Agar agar should be soaked in the liquid first for 10-15 minutes, then gently brought to the boil and simmered while stirring until it dissolves completely: this will take about 5 minutes for powder and 10-15 minutes for flakes. Unlike gelatine, agar agar can be boiled and can even be re-melted if necessary. If you are unsure about the setting ability of your gel, test a small amount on a cold saucer: it should set in 20-30 seconds; if it doesn't you may need more agar agar, but if it's too firm add some more liquid.
For many of us, agar agar is most associated with school memories, as the medium to grow cultures used in petri dishes in science laboratories.
Variously called kanten, agar-agar, agar and Japanese gelatin, it is widely used in Asia. For culinary purposes, it is marketed in the form of powder or flakes.
In the Caribbean agar is used to prepare dense milk drinks, and in Hawaii luxury vegetable salads.
Natural agar agar is unflavoured, producing a firm, clear jelly, and is rich in iodine and trace minerals and has mildly laxative properties.
Grieve's classic A Modern Herbal: Agar-Agar is widely used as a treatment for constipation, but is usually employed with Cascara when atony of the intestinal muscles is present. It does not increase peristaltic action. Its therapeutic value depends on the ability of the dry Agar to absorb and retain moisture. Its action is mechanical and analogous to that of the cellulose of vegetable foods, aiding the regularity of the bowel movements. It is sometimes used as an adulterant of jams and jellies. It is usually administered in small shreds mixed with fruit, milk or any convenient vehicle.
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