Mizuika is another name for the bigfin reef squid. The mantle reaches forty centimeters, so it is a large animal, and in Kagoshima it is called mizuika, water squid, because of how transparent it looks. It is taken off the south of the prefecture and around the Amami islands.

Mada means the ink sac, the part most cooks would remove and throw away. This soup uses it.

In Amami the ink was not only food. It was believed to bring down flushing and to lower blood pressure, and people bought it as a medicine.

The cooking is quick and has to be. Stock is drawn from katsuobushi, pork and miso go into it, the squid is blanched and added, and once the pot has come back to the boil the ink is squeezed in from the sac. Squid held over the heat too long turns rubbery and loses its flavor, so nobody lingers. Fishing with an egi lure is said to have started on Amami Oshima and reached the Satsuma domain by the middle of the Edo period. Squid is caught here all year round, so unlike most regional dishes this one has no season attached to it at all. It is made in homes, taught at cooking classes, and served in school lunches. A black soup that was also a remedy.