Your traditional potato chips could soon be replaced by a rather unexpected ingredient - jellyfish .
Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark have developed a way to create jellyfish chips with a crispy texture.
While jellyfish have been a staple in Asian cuisine for centuries, they remain an oddity to the western palate.
To prepare jellyfish, traditionally the bell or body of the creature is marinated in salt and potassium alum for several weeks to produce a crunchy tecture.
But the Danish researchers’ technique produces the same results in just a few days.
Dr Mathias P. Clausen, who led the study, said: “Using ethanol, we have created jellyfish chips that have a crispy texture and could be of potential gastronomic interest.”
The researchers also looked at how the long fibrous filaments in the gelatinous jellyfish bell are transformed during the curing process to produce the crunchy texture.
Dr Clausen said: “Little is known about the molecular anatomy of the jellyfish. We are still not completely sure which structures we are visualising.”
While overfishing and climate change have decimated some fishing stocks, jellyfish populations are booming.
As a result, the fishing industry is looking to jellyfish as a viable food source for the expanding global population.
Jellyfish are also very nutritious, with high levels of vitamin B12, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and selenium.