shiokara (thing)

The words ika no shiokara (いかの塩辛; Japanese for "salty-spicy squid"), or simply shiokara 塩辛, bely the true foulness of this substance -- and I speak as someone who actively enjoys eating, among other things, raw horse meat and rotten eggs. Perhaps the recipe will say more than a thousand yucks:

• Take one squid.
• Chop off its head.
• Cut the tentacles into short pieces, salt them and throw them into a barrel.
• Scoop out the contents of the squid's head and mash them in a blender.
• Pour the resulting purplish-pink ooze into the barrel. Stir.
• Allow to ferment for half a year.
• Enjoy.

Shiokara is most often employed as a sushi topping, or eaten as is to accompany beer or sake. Most Japanese people loathe the stuff.