The present technology relates to the use of a seaweed-based food product that provides the color, texture, and nutrients necessary to prepare a meat-like product that is capable of providing the consistency, texture, and taste of a meat that is commonly consumed, including from animals such as a cow, a sheep, a pig, a chicken, a turkey, an ostrich, and a fish. The seaweed-based food product can be derived from a red, brown, or green seaweed that is capable of providing the taste, consistency and color, both when cooked and when raw, of a meat that is consumed.