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What comes to your mind when you hear the word seaweed? Some of you may think of the black sheet of nori used to wrap sushi rolls and onigiri rice balls. But that’s seaweed processed into just one particular form, and there are many other ways seaweed is used in Japanese cooking — in soup to obtain stock, for example, or stewing with a variety of vegetables and meat or seafood a slightly sweet soy-sauce based sauce.

As widely used as it is in Japanese cuisine, however, one thing you wouldn’t really expect from seaweed is for it to add “cuteness” to the food; they’re mostly dark green or brownish plants that grow in the sea, after all. Well, you might want to think again, because it turns out we’ve discovered a creative seaweed product that can add tons of cute and fun to your dish. Yes, it’s cat-shaped seaweed, and the best part is, you can get it delivered to your home each month in dried form!

The feline shaped seaweed is offered by major Japanese shopping site Felissimo and for 980 yen (US$7.88) a month, you can receive a set of eight dried seaweed pieces. The product uses natural konbu (kelp) seaweed from the northern island of Hokkaido.

 ▼ Here’s the set that you’ll receive: three pieces each of two regular cat silhouettes and two pieces of a cat silhouette with a decorative cut-out pattern. Each month, you’ll receive one of three possible combinations in rotation.

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▼ Here’s a picture of one of the set combinations. Just soak the dried seaweed in water, and you’ll see the pieces take their feline shapes. In this case, you’ll even be seeing stars in one of the patterns!

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▼ Here’s the second set combination. Isn’t the cut-out heart just adorable?

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▼ And this is the third set combination, with a cut-out pattern of playful looking musical notes.

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Here’s an example of how cute a plate decorated with these little seaweed creations can be. The cats almost look like they’re playing amongst the food, don’t they? We have to say, that certainly seems like an excellent way to add fun to your food.

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And cat lovers will be happy to know that 30 yen from each monthly payment will go to the Felissimo Cat Fund to support activities such as the safe capture and relocation of pet animals without homes, as well as preventing overbreeding in the wild cat population.

Unfortunately, Felissimo doesn’t ship items overseas, but if you live in Japan, the temptation to order this product might be great indeed particularly if you happen to be fond of cats, because who wouldn’t want a couple of edible kitties dancing on their plates, right?

Source: Felissimo online shop: Kraso (Japanese), Roomie (Japanese)
Photos: Felissimo online shop: Kraso