how to make crispy seaweed and where to find seaweed

Last year, UK sales of seaweed rose by 125% after Jamie Oliver credited his two stone weight loss to it. Last month, Waitrose announced it was to become available in store nationwide. Coincidence? We think not.

Oliver, who's well known as a health food champion, waxed lyrical about it to the Radio Times last September, commenting: "I thought seaweed was hippy, globetrotting stuff but our ancestors ate seaweed. It's got a load of iodine and it's the most nutritious vegetable in the world… It's like dynamite - fibre, nutrients, all the minerals, aids digestion - unbelievable."

And it turns out he isn't wrong.

There are around 650 varieties of edible seaweed that grow on British coastlines and the health benefits of it really are enormous. Aside from what Oliver said, it's an excellent source of protein, regulates blood pressure, contains chlorophyll which reduces hunger and fights inflammation, AND it has a higher rate of vitamin C than oranges. It also just happens to be the only vegetal source of vitamin B12 there is, and in a recent study, conducted by Newcastle University scientists, it was found that eating it can cut your rate of fat absorption by around 75%.

Rich in antioxidants, zinc, magnesium and omegas, it's also detoxifies the skin, boosts hydration and encourages cell renewal.

So, how do you incorporate it into your daily diet? Fresh seaweed is already popular in many restaurant, but unless you're ordering "crispy seaweed" from the Chinese takeaway (which, more often than not is actually fried shredded cabbage - sorry, guys) or eating miniscule strands of Nori in sushi, it's currently not consumed in the average household. Time to change.

Below, we've listed nine easy ways that you can eat the salty stuff. Stock the cupboards! We'll see you in the queue at Waitrose...

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