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Surströmming (Swedish for "sour herring") is fermented Baltic Sea herring that has been a staple of traditional northern Swedish cuisine since at least the 16th century.
Just enough salt is used to prevent the raw fish from rotting. A fermentation process of at least six months gives the lightly-salted fish its characteristic strong smell and somewhat acidic taste.
When a can of surströmming is opened, the contents release a strong and sometimes overwhelming odour. The dish is ordinarily eaten outdoors. According to a Japanese study, a newly opened can of surströmming has one of the most putrid food smells in the world, even more so than similarly fermented fish dishes such as the Korean Hongeohoe or Japanese Kusaya.
Just enough salt is used to prevent the raw fish from rotting. A fermentation process of at least six months gives the lightly-salted fish its characteristic strong smell and somewhat acidic taste.
When a can of surströmming is opened, the contents release a strong and sometimes overwhelming odour. The dish is ordinarily eaten outdoors. According to a Japanese study, a newly opened can of surströmming has one of the most putrid food smells in the world, even more so than similarly fermented fish dishes such as the Korean Hongeohoe or Japanese Kusaya.
In 1981, a German landlord evicted a tenant without notice after the tenant spread surströmming brine in the apartment building's stairwell. When the landlord was taken to court, the court ruled that the termination was justified when the landlord's party demonstrated their case by opening a can inside the courtroom. The court concluded that it "had convinced itself that the disgusting smell of the fish brine far exceeded the degree that fellow-tenants in the building could be expected to tolerate"
The moment they all open the can
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