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