Ever heard of Surströmming?
It’s like Sweden’s secret weapon of stinkiness—a funky fish feast made from fermented Baltic herring.
These little guys, smaller than your usual herring, get nabbed up in the northern parts of the Kalmar Strait, usually in April or May, before they start doing their fishy family planning.
Making Surströmming is easy-peasy: just salt up the fish to keep ’em from going bad, then stash ’em in a sealed container for about six months to let the magic happen. And boy, does it! This fermenting process gives ’em a smell that’ll knock your socks off—think rotten eggs dialed up to eleven.
But hey, that doesn’t stop folks from giving it a go! Although, fair warning, you’ll want to crack open that can outdoors unless you want your whole house smelling like a fish market.
Surströmming’s so famous for its stench that there are challenges on social media to see who’s brave enough to chow down on it. Think you’re up for the challenge?