Better Burgers, More Healthful Hot Dogs

Diet & Fitness

That's the goal of a group of scientists trying to make these red-meat-rich, unhealthful foods more healthful by adding nutrient-packed seaweed, a staple in Japanese and other Asian cuisines.

But it's still early days of research. The Madrid-based team has been exploring what happens to the taste, texture and smell of meat products when they replace some of the fat and salt content with dried and powdered seaweed.

So far, the scientists have primarily experimented with adding three species of seaweed — sea spaghetti, wakame and nori — to different meats. These seaweeds are already common ingredients in a number of European and Asian dishes. Sea spaghetti is used in salads in coastal areas of western Europe, wakame is popular in miso soup, and nori is used in sushi rolls.

According to one team member, Susana Cofrades of the Institute of Food Science, Technology, and Nutrition in Madrid, the taste of seaweed-sprinkled meats depends on which processed meat they are trying to transform, as well as the type of seaweed they use.

And taste testers tend to prefer the milder flavors of wakame and sea spaghetti over nori. "Nori is the least acceptable," Cofrades says. "Not only because of its intense flavor but also because it imparts a dark color."

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