Daily Feature Glossary Terms

A gray or dark brown sea vegetable, commonly referred to as kelp (or konbu) that is sun dried to form hard dark green to almost black in color, sheets that are processed into a variety of different products including foods, cosmetics, health items, and other products. After being dried, a fine powder forms over the surface of the dried black sheet or strip of kombu. Often considered to be a natural form of MSG since it contains a significant amount of glutamic acid, kombu is strong in flavor and used as both a food flavoring and a food tenderizer.