百子櫃THE HUNDRED DRAWERS
Kelp
海帶
Dried sheets of a large seaweed (kombu, Laminaria). Kelp and rue are the Hong Kong signature in 綠豆沙 that Guangzhou does not share: one strip of about 20 g, soaked half an hour, rinsed, cut short and added for the last fifteen minutes once the beans have burst, so it stays tender. The kombu in the Japanese aisle at Coles and Woolworths is the same seaweed; Asian grocers sell dried kelp strips and knots. Do not buy wakame, a different seaweed.
Preparation
Soak thirty minutes, rinse off grit and the white bloom, cut into short strips; add for the last fifteen minutes only.
Availability in Australia
Easy to find
Australian name · kombu / dried kelp
Where · Coles and Woolworths Japanese aisle (kombu); Asian grocer dry shelf (kelp strips, knots)
What to ask for · Kombu is kelp; not wakame
Where · Coles and Woolworths Japanese aisle (kombu); Asian grocer dry shelf (kelp strips, knots)
What to ask for · Kombu is kelp; not wakame
