Chef Angel León has done it again: he’s discovered a new superfood from the sea, one with countless health benefits and nutritional properties. It’s called sea rice.

As a child he recalled seeing a typical eelgrass growing along coastline meadows. It was called Zostera marina and, after researching, he found that hunters in Sonora, Mexico had been eating it for generations. He moved forward with his plans to study it alongside researchers at the University of Cádiz and to run experiments in his kitchen.

He and his team found that the rice is extremely healthy: it’s gluten-free, high in protein, and rich in fiber, vitamins A and E and omega-3 and -6 fats. Even better, it’s quite tasty, with a flavor similar to a mix of rice and quinoa with saline notes. Furthermore, this plant is one of the most sustainable on the planet, and seagrass, in general, is important for biodiversity, carbon sequestration and environmental preservation.

Says Leon, “For more than a decade, Aponiente’s whole team has been working to raise awareness about, and to utilize, the sea’s bounty, adding new products and foods to our diet that had been hitherto unknown. Our dream is for the sea to be part of everyone’s diet and we hope to achieve this, little by little.”

According to foodswinesfromspain.com