"Take lato-the translucently green, miniature grapes from the sea. Pinch off a bunch and bite into it. The liquid inside each precious globe jets out in a small spray- slightly salty, mildly sticky, a gliding: malapot lapot na madulas. Texture is also motion - an ephemeral encounter of teeth, substance and tongue, a gustatory moment playing on the scale of pleasure, from middling right up to ecstatic. Always it is just a fleeting moment, a convergence in a fleeting second of the self and of the object-a blossoming inside"
from: 'Kinilaw: a Philippine Cuisine of Freshness' - by Edilberto N. Alegre & Doreen G. Fernandez. - Makati, Metro Manila: Bookmark, cl991

The strange thing is that it actually does taste just like that.

Seaweed As Food - Worldwide 

Seaweeds, raw, cooked, or dried, are used as food in many cultures. Seaweeds are good sources of many vitamins and minerals, and some are said to contain substantial amounts of protein.

Unfortunately, we cannot digest many of the complex carbohydrates in the plants, but this may be an advantage for those counting calories. Seaweeds can add variety and taste to bland foods and may be used to wrap such foods as rice. 

The harvesting and marketing of edible seaweed is a growing business. There is no need for planting, fertilizing, weeding, or tilling. The ocean takes care of everything, though oil and sewage pollutants can spoil the best of harvests. Seaweeds are harvested by hand, rinsed in water, and dried on lines or nets. Connoisseurs use seaweed in salads, soups, omelets, casseroles, and sandwiches. 

• Ulva is not called sea lettuce for nothing. It can be eaten fresh in salads.
• Limu, including limu 'ele 'ele (the green Enteromorpha prolifera) and limu manauea (the red Gracilaria monopifolia), are beloved by the Hawaiians.
• Purple laver (a species of Porphyra, a red alga) prepared in various ways is eaten in some parts of the British Isles. Washed and boiled, it is formed into flat cakes, rolled in oatmeal, and fried; it is then called laverbread. Purple laver is also eaten as a hot vegetable or fried with bacon.
• Irish moss (Chondrus, a red alga and a source of carrageenan) is dried and used in preparing blancmange and other desserts in eastern Canada, New England, and parts of northern Europe.
• Palmana, another red alga, is dried and eaten, mostly by those living along the Atlantic coast of Canada and northern Europe. Called dulse, it is sometimes still used in making bread and several types of desserts. For those on a diet, dulse can also be chewed like tobacco (of course it's nicotine-free).

(My grandmother used to hang a bunch of kelp outside her kitchen door. If it was crispy or limp, it would forecast, very reliably, the weather - sunny or rainy. Nowadays, of course, you can absolutely trust the TV weather forecast).

It is in the Orient, however, that preparing seaweed for food has reached the level of an art. Several species are carefully cultivated, supporting multimillion-dollar operations. 

	Seaweed culture is a very old tradition in Japan, and Japanese cuisine uses seaweed in many ways.
These ladies are gathering kelp in Northern Japan.

Species of Laminaria and Alaria, a kelp called kombu, are dried and shredded, then prepared in various ways. They are even used to make tea and candy. See also: From Poot-Poot to Fish Sauce to Umami to MSG Undaria, or wakame, is another edible kelp best when fresh or cooked for a very short time.  Porphyra, a red alga, is used to make thin sheets of nori, widely used in soups, and for wrapping sushi, boiled rice stuffed with bits of raw fish, sea urchin roe, or other ingredients.

In 'developed' parts of the world, such as the United States: Sea palm (Postelsia), also known as "sea noodles," is a best-seller. They are said to be excellent when sautéd in honey or in butter and garlic. Coastal Indians cooked it in ovens and made it into cakes.  Pickled bullwhip kelp (Nereocystis) tastes even better than regular pickled cucumbers. (But wouldn't anything?) Bladder rockweed (a type of Fucus) makes great tea.

Source: (Marine Biology - Peter Castro, Michael Huber - Wm C Brown)