Posted on 17th November 2023
Isle of Skye's Culinary Delight: Sea Salt and Seaweed Fusion.
Inspired by the Isle of Skye’s Marine Magic!
Come take a walk with me along Skye’s gleaming, jet-black, basalt shoreline, which we are lucky enough to call home. The light breeze, that seems to be gently guiding you along, brings gorgeously refreshing salty scents, reminiscent of the finest seaweed salt. The rhythmical lapping of the waves soothes your mind. You can’t help but look into the glimmering sea, where you may be surprised to see waters of the truest turquoise and crystal clarity – the type you would expect to find surrounding a tropical isle. You can see all the way to the seabed, where tall, majestic seaweed grows. The broad blades playfully catch the sunlight, illuminating their caramel browns. These graceful flora sway in mesmeric dance to the nurturing heartbeat of the sea. A scene good enough to eat… and now, well, you can!
Tantalising Seaweed Salt Flavour Profile and Recipes Ideas
We have put our Isle of Skye sea salt crystals with their perfect partner, Skye-grown Atlantic Wakame seaweed. You have the luxurious award-winning taste of our natural sea salt crystals, finished with an irresistible umami flavour from the dried seaweed flakes. Our gourmet seaweed salt transforms any recipe by giving it an instant moreish quality. You can use it to elevate the tastes of vegetables or seafood. Add it to enliven the flavours in noodle or tofu dishes. It can even add an exciting twist to breads and shortcrust pastries. Truly a kitchen staple for any passionate cooks and foodies looking for a greater culinary adventure.
Composition of Isle of Skye Seaweed Salt
Our mineral-rich sea salt crystals already provide an array of trace minerals that you cannot find in refined salts. The dried seaweed flakes further broaden the variety of trace minerals you get. In many countries, iodine is artificially added to salt to help prevent iodine deficiency. However, the Atlantic Wakame has naturally occurring iodine. Thyroid hormones, which help to maintain the body’s metabolism and are used during bone and brain development, require iodine for their production.
Flourishing Sustainable Seaweed Cultivation on Skye
But not only does it benefit your tastebuds, it also benefits the environment too. Our seaweed is grown locally off the southern shores of Skye by Kelp Crofters. They grow their own seaweed so as not to disturb the finite wild seaweed habitat. The harvesting techniques they use are crofting, a method born in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, which uses small-scale, sustainable cultivation. As seaweed naturally grows around the shores of Skye, very little is needed to maintain it. Moreover, the seaweed patches they care for contribute to carbon capture, helping combat climate change. Their seaweed patches also provide a home to many sea fauna, helping to increase the ocean’s vitally important biodiversity. Eco Cascade, the company which dries and chops our seaweed, is situated in Kyle of Lochalsh, just on the other side of the bridge to Skye, so our seaweed never travels far. It is a community interest company, so benefiting the local community, economy and environment form their core values.
Keeping Scotland’s Seaweed Harvesting Heritage Alive
These companies are keeping a Scottish tradition alive. Scottish seaweed harvesting is slightly newer than Scottish sea salt harvesting, nevertheless, it still dates back to the 18th century. It was an obvious resource to make use of as it grows in abundance around Scotland’s coastline and islands. Originally, harvesters plucked naturally occurring seaweed from the shore by hand, until a rope system was developed. Ropes were soaked in the spores from the seaweed and then anchored to the seafloor, allowing the seaweed to grow from them. Seaweed has a myriad of uses.
Historically, seaweed was burnt to create kelp ash, which could be used to make glass. Kelp ash’s alkali properties helped in the production of soap. Seaweed was and continues today to be used as a natural fertiliser. Containing several different types of phytohormones, seaweed fertilisers promote plant and crop growth, without the water pollution caused by chemical fertilisers. Alginate, a thick gel, can be extracted from seaweed and used for many important medical applications and in beauty products. In fact, seaweed can be used whole in beauty products, like our fellow Skye-based enterprise, the Isle of Skye Seaweed Co., does. Scotland’s seaweed industry declined in the latter half of the 20th century, but now we are a part of its rebirth. We are very proud to be contributing a fully authentic Skye experience to seaweed salt in the UK.
Why not start the next chapter of Scotland’s seaweed history on your plate!