a very general term covering many edible sea plants; kombu is one variety
Common Mistakes
I put some kombu in the salad for crunch.
I put some kombu in the soup for flavor.
Kombu is typically cooked in broth, not eaten raw in salads.
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
Kombu is a specific type of kelp used mainly in Japanese cooking for making soup stock (dashi). Kelp is the broad biological category referring to large brown seaweeds that grow in underwater forests. Seaweed is the most general term, covering all edible marine algae including kombu, nori (used for sushi rolls), and wakame (used in salads and miso soup). While all kombu is kelp, not all kelp is sold as kombu — the word kombu refers specifically to the varieties dried and aged for Japanese cuisine, especially Saccharina japonica.
Borrowed directly from Japanese 昆布 (kombu), which itself comes from the older Japanese word konbu. The word entered English in the late 19th century as Japanese cuisine became known in the West.