Say hello to Guso, a seaweed cultivated by coastal communities in Southeast Asia since ancient times.
It was noted in a 17th century Spanish dictionary in Panay as tambalang, an "herb" from the sea (Mentrida 1637).
It is low in calories yet high in fiber, antioxidants, and minerals like calcium and potassium (Astillo 2023, Loso 2020). Throughout the Visayas and Southeast Asia Eucheuma seaweeds are consumed fresh like salads, but are also used for their gel or gum-like structures - which are extracted for products like gulaman (Montaño 2004), as well as milk and toothpaste! (FAO)
References
Alonso de Mentrida (1559-1637) 1637 - Diccionario de la lengua Bisaya Hiligueina y Haraya de la Isla de Panay - Page 380 - https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015014521424&seq=387&q1=Guso
Jessica D. Astillo et al, 2023 - Guso (Eucheuma sp.) Ice Cream Enhanced with Blue ternate
Maricris M. Loso, Pet Anthony L. Pascual 2020 - Effects of Different Levels of Seaweed (Eucheuma spinosum) on the Sensory Qualities and Selling Price of Fish Balls
Marco Nemesio E. Montaño, Ph.D. 2004 - Gelatin, gulaman, ‘JellyAce,’ atbp. PhilStar - https://www.philstar.com/business/science-and-environment/2004/09/16/264974/gelatin-gulaman-145jellyace146-atbp
FAO - Norman Stanley - CHAPTER 3 - PRODUCTION, PROPERTIES AND USES OF CARRAGEENAN - https://www.fao.org/4/x5822e/x5822e05.htm
