Japanese kelp; ma-kombu
A species of edible kelp (Laminaria japonica) widely used in Japanese cuisine, especially for making dashi stock.
Ma-kombu is ideal for making dashi stock.
Hokkaido is famous as a production area for ma-kombu.
Usually written in katakana; usually written in kana.
Kanji spelling exists but is rarely used; the word is normally written in kana.
The name マコンブ (真昆布) literally means 'true kelp', distinguishing it as a high-quality species. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.