Happy 4/20! I bet some readers here know what I mean…yes 420 means “weed” (marijana) which is still illegal in a lot of countries including Japan, but well, this is how I enjoy having weed!
I love seaweed. I grew up eating nori (roasted seaweed) wakame (silky seaweed you find in miso soup) mozuku&mekabu (slimy seaweed) etc…you know, there are a variety of seaweed! And once in a while, I crave for wakame seaweed mixed rice and I made another batch with a little addition this time.
Ready to check how I made it? Let’s cook!
<Today’s Recipe>
Wakame Seaweed Rice Spring Version
<Ingredients>
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- 2 bowls cooked brown rice (leftover is perfect, but this one works too!)
- 1 teaspoon dried wakame seaweed
- ½ medium carrot – finely chopped
- 1 hand edamame in pod – steamed
- Some salt to taste
- Some black sesame seeds
<Directions>
- Soak wakame seaweed in water for 5~10min. Squeeze excess water and set aside.
- Mix all ingredients together and enjoy!
<Cooking Tips>
- It’s so good with rice balls, but to make rice balls, I recommend using white, middle grain rice for perfectly sticky rice. (but don’t choose sticky sweet rice…it’s going to be too intense stickiness!)
- Yes, the reason why I call it the “spring version” is because of edamame…the fresh green color gives blooming Spring vibes!
Hmm, I love it! Wakame seaweed rice is kids’ favorite school lunch item and even though my mom never made it at home, I started to make it on my own and feel so nostalgic for a care-free childhood memory.
<Japan and Marijuana>
Personally the smell of marijuana is too intense for me, so I never liked it.
When recreational use of marijuana was legalized, I was in LA and the whole Japanese community, especially parents with kids, were shocked. In schools, we were taught that drugs including marijuana destroys our whole life in every occasion in a special class. Also on the next day when recreational use of marijuana was legalized, the Japanese embassy sent out an email saying Even though smoking marijuana is legalized in LA and a lot more cities, it’s still illegal in Japan so we’re risking arrest if we smoke it and visit Japan. If you smoke and plan visiting Japan, be careful. I don’t know if Japanese police will attempt to arrest you if you smell like it, but well…you don’t want to risk your happy travel time!
Happy (sea)weed Day, everyone!
<Other Sea”weed” Recipes>
Do you know mekabu? Mekabu Seaweed Salad
How about Hijiki? Hijiki Stire Fry
For rice balls, nori is the popular choice as a wrap! Takikomi gohan
Enjoy home cooking and your own creation of homemade food:)
Tanooki Homemade Cafe 
Seaweed is going to be the food of the future, along with Jellyfish…both can be instrumental in solving food shortages, they are easily replenish able, and you CAN make delicious food with both as this post shows!
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Aw thank you John!
By the way, your comment reminded me that insects are getting people’s attention as “our future food.” Have you heard of that or have you actually tried eating them, like beetles or grasshopper? I’m ok with cooking seaweed and jellyfish(although I never had a whole jellyfish in my kitchen…when it’s in store, they’re all chopped up already!) but cooking insects…well, I need to shake off all the “first impression” of insects😂
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NO, I’m not an insect eater…they are usually offered as a “gimmick” like chocolate covered…many don’t like the concept of seaweed or jellyfish, but they are 100% sustainable and nutritious so I’m open to those!
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True!🙌✨ Yay to seaweed and jellyfish👍❤️
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Happy 420 Day, even though nori is the only weed for you 🙂 Nori makes me want to order miso soup from a restaurant near me. (must be lunch time, I am hungry).
Thanks for the tip about visiting Japan. Truthfully, I don’t notice the smell of weed so much any more, I guess that is because I am around it so much. 🙂
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Ahh, yeah be careful! for those who aren’t used to the smell of weed, it’s so intense🤣
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I know, right 😬😜
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I received my second Covid-19 vaccination on 4/20 last year, which means I reached peak immunity on May the 4th. My important anniversaries are Pothead Day and Star Wars Day.
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Haha really!! Then you’ll never forget these important day just like your birthday🤣👍💕
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So Japan is the same as Indonesia. Any drugs are illegal here. Except from cigarettes and alcohol, but there sometimes are voices that want to ban alcohol, too. 🤔
I’m a big fan of seaweed and I also think that we should do everything we can to keep our oceans clean to be able to harvest seaweed in them. It’s amazing stuff, not only for eating but also for skin care, as a medicine and I think I also read that it produces far more oxygen than trees. So it’s the number 1 future stuff!!
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I personally don’t drink that much myself, and I don’t like people who got drunk too much and excuse all the bad behavior was because of alcohol, so I might vote for banning alcohol if the pole is done right next day I see those people😂
And wow, there is another reason for me to love seaweed😍 I wish there was any way that I could grow seaweed at home😌💕
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You’re very right about alcohol. Unfortunately, I also know some of that kind of people and I hate that behaviour. 🤬
But when I talk about alcohol, I’m usually meaning a good glass of wine that adds perfectly to a nice dinner. Or a few drinks with friends. 😉
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Right! Drink with friends are always good🍷 I hope we can have dinner together. I’m not an expert for wine so tell me what’s your recommendation that night😉👍✨
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That would be nice 😊 but I’m no expert at all. We just drink the wine we like and that’s about it. 😁 I once wanted to do a sommelier course to know more about wine and tasting it but it was too expensive 😬
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Ahh sommelier course sounds expensive! But it must be fun to learn more about wine and how to describe the delicate flavor of wine…for now I’d just say fruity yummy grape juice for adult😂 I wonder if there is a manual or template to describe wine taste🤔
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