Easy at home! How to revive moist seaweed and make it crispy again
Introduction
Seaweed only retains its flavor and aroma when it is crisp.
If you have slightly damp seaweed or dried seaweed that has not been toasted, you can toast it at home to bring out the fragrant aroma and make it even more delicious.
This time, we will introduce four easy ways to roast seaweed at home.
Precautions before roasting
Before that, let's keep in mind the following two points.
1. Dried seaweed and roasted seaweed are roasted differently
Although both dried and roasted seaweed are made from the same raw materials, there is a big difference in their moisture content.
Dried seaweed: about 5-8%
Roasted seaweed: approx. 2%
As such, dried seaweed contains slightly more water than roasted seaweed, so care must be taken when suddenly applying heat as the seaweed can become wrinkled and easily burn.
When toasting dried seaweed, use aluminum foil and toast it slowly over a lower heat than you would for roasted seaweed.
2. Be careful with the front and back of the seaweed
Whether you're using a frying pan or on a stove, the general rule is to heat the seaweed from the back side.
We have explained in detail about the front and back of nori in another article, but the smooth side is the front and the rough side is the back .
When heat is applied to nori seaweed, both ends stand up straight, so if you cook it from the front, when you flip it over and cook the other side, the rough parts on the back side won't cook properly, resulting in uneven cooking.
By cooking from the backside, the surface is thoroughly cooked and the food is cooked evenly.
How to roast seaweed
Sorry for the wait. Below, we will introduce how to deliciously roast seaweed at home.
Method 1: Frying in a frying pan
What you need
- Frying pan
- seaweed
Steps (roasted seaweed)
- First, heat a frying pan over medium-high heat.
- Drop one sheet of seaweed into a heated frying pan and cook over medium heat for about 15-20 seconds on each side.
- When both ends of the nori stand up straight, it's done.
Steps (dried seaweed)
Next is "dried seaweed". As mentioned above, dried seaweed has more moisture than roasted seaweed, so if you roast it in the same way as roasted seaweed, it will burn or become soggy.
- Place a sheet of aluminum foil on top of the frying pan and then place the dried seaweed on top of it.
- When you can smell the faint aroma of seaweed, remove it from the frying pan.
point
- Be careful not to use too much flame as it will burn.
- To prevent the seaweed from floating off the frying pan, heat it while pressing it lightly with chopsticks or a spatula.
- If it is heated too much it will change colour, so the key is to sear it quickly while keeping an eye on it.
Method 2: Roasting in a toaster oven
What you need
- Toaster oven
- Aluminum foil
- seaweed
procedure
- Preheat the toaster oven to 100°C.
- Lay the aluminum foil flat and place the nori on it. Place in a toaster oven and toast on both sides for about 10 seconds each.
- Once the seaweed is lightly browned all over, remove it from the oven.
point
- Baking times vary depending on the model of toaster oven, so adjust the time while checking the color of the bread.
- You can bake it without aluminum foil, but it is safer to use foil to prevent it from burning. If you are baking two sheets of seaweed at the same time, make sure they do not overlap.
Method 3: Roasting in the microwave
What you need
- microwave oven
- Wide plate
- seaweed
procedure
- Place the seaweed on a wide plate and, without covering it with plastic wrap, microwave at 500-600W for approximately 30 seconds.
- If it's still damp, flip it over and heat for another 30 seconds.
point
- Be sure to thoroughly wipe off any moisture from the plates you are using.
- If you feel like it needs to be a little crispier, turn it over and heat it for another 30 seconds.
Method 4: Roasting on the stove
What you need
- Gas stove
- Tongs
- seaweed
procedure
- Light the gas stove on high heat and slowly bring the seaweed closer to the flame from a distance of about 20 cm, and toast it for about 20 to 30 seconds.
- While holding it, gradually change the part that is exposed to the fire, and brown both sides and all four corners.
- When a fragrant aroma rises, it's done.
point
- Use a high flame at a distance.
- Be careful not to overcook it, as it will turn brown and have a burnt smell.
- Be careful when grilling to avoid getting burned.
- Obviously, chopsticks will burn, so make sure you use heat-resistant tongs.
summary
What did you think? This time, we introduced four ways to quickly restore the crispness of moist seaweed.
Whatever method you use, it's important to be careful not to burn the seaweed. If it burns, it will taste bitter, so the key is to lightly toast it while keeping an eye on it.
Also, all of these methods are just suggestions for improving the texture of the seaweed. Please try "just before eating" and "only the number of sheets you will eat."