Easy Korean Seaweed Salad Recipe #vegan

This cool Korean seaweed salad is uber healthy, quick to make, and HIGHLY ADDICTIVE. Make this all-time favorite, classic side dish quickly and easily from your pantry.

Vegan Korean salad makes a cool accompaniment to other hot vegan Korean foods such as vegan soft tofu soup or vegan kimchi fried rice.

The Secret Sauce

The sauce is a combination of sour and umami that makes this salad taste a bit like a pickle from the sea.

The sauce is not a huge secret, but these simple seasonings in combination freshen up the seaweed so much.

1. Unseasoned rice vinegar
2. Salt
3. A touch of sugar
4. Your choice of soy sauce, liquid aminos, or coconut aminos

That’s all you need.  You could also add sesame seeds and sesame oil if you wish too.

Other Ingredients you will need

You will need dried seaweed, specifically the wakame variety, an English cucumber, and white onion.

Some restaurants skip the cucumber, probably due to additional cost, so you can too if you don’t have one on hand.

Wakame seaweed is sold in various packaging.  This recipe calls for 1.5 oz.  If you don’t want to weight, that equals about a handful dried or 4 cups of seaweed hydrated.

The Shortcut method

The traditional way to make this salad is to rehydrate the seaweed and then blanch it in boiling water for a couple of minutes. This makes the seaweed silkier in texture and also seals in the green color a bit.

Fortunately, I don’t mind a bit of crunch or discoloration, so the shortcut method is to rehydrate the seaweed by covering in boiling water.

3 Reasons you should eat Seaweed

If you are squeamish about seaweed, here are 3 reasons you should start eating this wonder food according to Self magazine.

1. Studies have shown that it can help block fat absorption.
2. Seaweed is rich in minerals such as iodine, which you don’t get from Kosher salt. (Table salt is fortified with iodine but so heavily processed and avoided by most cooks).
3. It contains both fiber (which helps satiate your appetite) and protein.

Health reasons aside, it’s also just tasty, and you can easily keep it stocked in your pantry.

Why you should keep Seaweed in your pantry

Unlike a dark, leafy green that must be bought fresh or stored frozen, this equally vitamin rich vegetable comes dried.

You may not always have time to shop for fresh vegetables or have space in your freezer.

However, you can keep dried seaweed stored in your pantry and quickly rehydrate it whenever you need some greens.

Is this recipe Korean or Japanese?

This is very similar to a Japanese wakame salad and could be interchangeably called the same thing.

The recipe presented here is what you might find as a banchan item in a Korean restaurant.

How to make Korean Seaweed Salad

Step #1: Bloom seaweed

Pour boiling hot water over the seaweed.  It will need 20-30 minutes to fully hydrate and you can leave as long as overnight.

The liquid should come up to room temperature, and the seaweed will be slightly crunchy to the bite.

Step #2: Chop Cucumber & Onion

While the seaweed is rehydrating, slice the onion and cucumber.  Thin slices, as thin as you can go to match the thin pieces of seaweed.

If you don’t like the bite of raw onion, rinse under cold water to remove some of the sting. 

Step #3: Drain and chop seaweed

Once the seaweed has bloomed, drain, and roughly chop into 1 – 2″ pieces.  Put in a bowl with the sliced onion and cucumber.

TIP: Save the seaweed water. The leftover soaking liquid contains massive amounts of umami.

You can save and use for miso soup or in place of water for another soup, such as vegan Korean tofu soup.

Step #4: Toss

Toss the vegetables with the rice vinegar, salt, sugar, and soy sauce.  Taste and season with additional salt if desired.

Step #5: Serve

Mound onto a plate or make ahead up to 3 days in advance.  Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Note that the longer you store this salad, the fresh green color starts to deteriorate, but it is still tasty.

Helpful Tips:

1. Cover seaweed with hot water to make it softer. Though you can just soak it in room temperature overnight. It will just be a little more crunchy. If you prefer the seaweed to silkier in texture, cook in boiling water on the stove for 2-3 minutes.
2. Save the seaweed water if desired for miso soup or other soup in place of water.
3. Rinse the onions in water to take away some of their raw bite.
4. Optional garnish with sesame seeds for crunch and sesame oil for extra flavor.
5. Make ahead and keep for up to 3 days in the fridge, though it will start to discolor and become less green the longer it sits with the vinegar dressing.

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Do you love seaweed salads? Please spread the Asian ♥ and share!