84 THE WEALTH OF THE SEA 



green and crisp. It is often eaten with soup much as 

 Americans eat crackers. 



The Japanese also use it in the preparation of a 

 sort of sandwich called sushi, which is prepared by 

 placing a thin layer of boiled rice on a sheet of 

 amanori, with strips of meat or fish on top of the 

 rice. The sushi is then rolled up and cut into trans- 

 verse slices. 



The Japanese dry certain species of laminaria and 

 prepare a food known as kombu. This industry is 

 located chiefly in Osaka, Tokio, and Hakodate. In 

 Osaka alone there are about forty-five factories each 

 employing at least ten persons. 



The laminaria are gathered in summer by men 

 in open boats, who tear or cut the algae by means 

 of hooks attached to long poles. Some is also har- 

 vested by means of rakes dragged along the bottom. 

 The laminaria are spread on the beach to dry. When 

 completely dry the stems are cut off and discarded, 

 and the fronds are sorted as to size and quality. The 

 trimmed, sorted kelp is then packed into long flat 

 bundles and shipped to kombu manufacturers. 



Kombu is a product peculiar to the Orient and 

 seems to appeal only to the Oriental taste. It is pre- 

 pared from the dried laminaria fronds in several 

 ways. The most popular product is shredded green 

 kombu, which is prepared by dyeing the dried lam- 

 inaria in a boiling solution of the dye, malachite 

 green. The dyed fronds are partially dried and then 

 flattened out and compressed in piles in wooden 

 frames. The laminaria are then shredded by means 



