What grows quickly, is packed with protein, has twice the nutritional value of kale, and tastes just like bacon? It’s likely that seaweed isn’t what came to mind, but scientists at Oregon State University have come up with just that. Dulse is a form of edible seaweed that grows wild along the Pacific and Atlantic coastlines. It’s harvested and commonly used by people in dried form as a cooking ingredient or nutritional supplement. OSU researchers say that the variety they’ve developed can be farmed and eaten fresh, with the potential for a new industry for Oregon. The strain of dulse they came up with, which looks like translucent red lettuce, has been used to make a dulse-based rice cracker and salad dressing, but it’s the bacon-tasting strips, which are fried like regular bacon, that are the biggest hit. Several chefs in the Portland area are currently testing the “sea bacon,” while OSU is preparing a marketing plan for a new line of dulse-based specialty foods.
