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A long time ago I read an article in a scientific journal about a seaweed extract that the Japanese use in almost everything they cook.

While the extract is tasteless and odorless, the research showed that it potentiated the effect of adding monosodium glutamate (msg). In other words, put some seaweed extract into your dish, and you need between 200 to 1000 times less msg to get the "msg taste effect" - which is why the Japanese use msg in most of their cooking, and do not suffer the health effects of habitual msg use that are seen in China, because they use a lot less msg.

O yez, I know so much, but I can't remember the name of that seaweed extract ... can somebody please tell me?

flag	asked Dec 10 at 1:01 klypos♦ 3,713●1●11

Kris · Accepted Answer · 2009-12-10 04:22:58Z UTC

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Is the seaweed extract you are thinking of called 'tangle extract'?

answered Dec 10 at 4:22

Kris♦♦
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	Tangle extract don't ring any bells - as I remember it was called by its Japanese name in the article, but there are lots of Japanese seaweed things for culinary use, and I can't tell one from another when I try searching, – klypos♦ Dec 10 at 7:59
	Should have mentioned that I can find plenty of info on the chemical compounds involved (see my.gophatdat.com/aminoacid88/5.jsp for example) but not the name of the seaweed extract the Japanese actually use. Of course, msg was originally discovered in seaweed, so that complicates searching! – klypos♦ Dec 10 at 8:27

klypos · Answer 2 · 2009-12-22 16:41:07Z UTC

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The chef in a local pub supplied the answer as KOMBU - which, of course, translates as "tangle" - so Kris was right - I just didn't recognise his answer.

What the Japanese do with Kombu - http://www.kurakonusa.com/kombu/cuisine/index.html

answered Dec 22 at 16:41

klypos♦
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Japanese seaweed extract and monosodium glutamate

2 Answers