Abstract
The eating habits of sea vegetables (edible seaweeds) in the Seto Inland Sea Coastal Area were investigated by informal interview of the residents. The results were as follows :
(1) Many kinds of red algae were consumed than the green and brown algae, for example, Ogonori, Igisu, Tengusa, Funori, and others. (2) The sea vegetables were harvested for self-sufficient food, and they were rarely harvested for the income. (3) The scientific property of sea vegetables that the residents learned from their long experiences were utilized in the traditional method of drying, storing, and processing the sea vegetables. (4) Igisu cooking was made of agar from the red algae (Ceramium boydenii) in the cooking process, in which the extract of rice bran, the powder of soybeans or the extract of boiled soybeans was added. The characteristics of Igisu cooking were due to the two regional differences, i.e. the area of using rice bran and the area of using soybean. (5) The dishes of Igisu and Hiziki have been used as the foods for the events concerning Buddhist rituals.
These eating habits of sea vegetables were greatly influenced by the ecological nature of sea vegetables, the natural and human living environment in the Seto Inland Sea Area, and the long history of using sea vegetables.
