27 Summer 518
Ashka was sifting through a rock pool looking for edible seaweed. She spotted the tiny feathery brown stems of pepper dulse on one of the rocks and picked a handful off the seasoning to flavour her fish. Movement caught her eye and she saw one of the occasional Svefra traders pull up to the wooden dock, hitch her casinor to it, and head for the Mercantile with a heavy pack bouncing on her back. She didn't think much of it except to mentally note that it would be a good time to see what had been brought once the Svefra had gone.
Another seaweed, green this time, floated like a thin scum on the surface of the pool, and Ashka dipped her hand in and trailed it across to stir it. She was trying to see if it was gutweed, which had strands like tubes, or sea lettuce, which was both flatter and more splayed out. Both could be eaten, but they needed to be prepared differently. Gutweed was best dried out a little and then fried crispy so that it crunched and crumbled when you bit down. Sea lettuce was better tossed into soup and left to simmer, or eaten raw in a salad. She'd confused the two once - and that once had been disgusting enough to make her not want to risk it again.
Gentle wafting of water stirred the weed enough that she saw the tubes open and drift shut again. It was definitely gutweed. She drew her hand across the rock pool more firmly, scooping up strands as she went. She had time to prepare it before their main evening meal, and both she and Chaya adored the stuff. She was careful though not to take all of it, but to leave some to regrow for later.
Ashka was sifting through a rock pool looking for edible seaweed. She spotted the tiny feathery brown stems of pepper dulse on one of the rocks and picked a handful off the seasoning to flavour her fish. Movement caught her eye and she saw one of the occasional Svefra traders pull up to the wooden dock, hitch her casinor to it, and head for the Mercantile with a heavy pack bouncing on her back. She didn't think much of it except to mentally note that it would be a good time to see what had been brought once the Svefra had gone.
Another seaweed, green this time, floated like a thin scum on the surface of the pool, and Ashka dipped her hand in and trailed it across to stir it. She was trying to see if it was gutweed, which had strands like tubes, or sea lettuce, which was both flatter and more splayed out. Both could be eaten, but they needed to be prepared differently. Gutweed was best dried out a little and then fried crispy so that it crunched and crumbled when you bit down. Sea lettuce was better tossed into soup and left to simmer, or eaten raw in a salad. She'd confused the two once - and that once had been disgusting enough to make her not want to risk it again.
Gentle wafting of water stirred the weed enough that she saw the tubes open and drift shut again. It was definitely gutweed. She drew her hand across the rock pool more firmly, scooping up strands as she went. She had time to prepare it before their main evening meal, and both she and Chaya adored the stuff. She was careful though not to take all of it, but to leave some to regrow for later.
Common, Pavi, Fratava
