Create allergy card
← Browse ingredients

Squid Ink

Squid ink is the dark ink from squid, used to color and flavor dishes such as pasta, rice, and sauces.

Squid Ink — illustrative ingredient image

About Squid Ink

Squid ink is the dark liquid released from a squid’s ink sac and collected for culinary use. It is usually sold as a small quantity of liquid or paste, either fresh within the animal or packaged for cooking. Its colour ranges from deep brown to blue-black, and it disperses readily through moist sauces, doughs, broths, and cooking liquids.

It is used to colour and season pasta, rice dishes, sauces, soups, and seafood preparations. Squid ink contributes a briny, marine flavour with a savoury edge, while its texture is generally smooth when blended into a dish. Commercial products may contain squid ink with salt, water, or other ingredients, so formulations are not necessarily equivalent.

Squid ink may appear as a dark liquid or paste, with colour ranging from deep brown to blue-black. Fresh ink is associated with the ink sac, while packaged versions may be portioned or formulated with other ingredients. Stirring it into moist sauces, doughs, broths, or cooking liquids disperses the colour and produces a generally smooth texture.

Ingredient type
derived ingredient

FOLLOW IT TO THE PLATE

Where will you meet it?

Explore the dishes that use this ingredient and their country and cuisine connections.

Explore linked dishes

ON A MENU OR LABEL

Find local names and written forms to help recognise this ingredient.

See local names

Where squid ink appears

2 linked foods

Find foods to recognise by country and type. Recipes and products vary; these are recorded ingredient connections.

Showing 1–2 of 2

Main dishes

Rice dishes

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for squid ink

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

squid ink

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Squid Ink nutrition & diet

Squid Ink nutritional value

Representative benchmark: Crayfish / lobster, not further specified

Representative nutrition benchmarkOfficial table values for a comparable food category, not a laboratory measurement of this exact ingredient.

Per 100 g of 100 g edible portion in the named official reference form.

Calories
89kcal
Protein
19.2g
Carbs
0.7g
Fat
1.0g

Representative benchmark from a comparable official food-composition category; it is not a laboratory measurement of this exact ingredient. The displayed reference form must be considered, and species, cultivar, recipe, brand, processing and preparation can change values.

Portions & preparation

Establish whether the product is fresh ink, dried ink, or a prepared commercial ingredient before selecting a reference. Use the amount actually incorporated into the dish rather than treating ink-colored pasta or rice as equivalent. Added salt, preservatives, carrier liquids, and other recipe ingredients require separate consideration.

Compare the right form: Match references to squid-derived ink in the documented fresh, dried, paste, or packaged form, including any carrier ingredients and preparation.

Diet considerations

Squid ink is animal-derived because it comes from squid. Commercial preparations may include salt, preservatives, or other ingredients, and dishes using it may contain seafood, dairy, egg, or meat-based additions. Pasta, rice, and sauces can introduce cereal ingredients and change portion-dependent carbohydrate patterns.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Typically incompatible
  • Vegetarian
    Typically incompatible
  • Pescatarian
    Typically compatible
  • Keto
    May be compatible
  • Paleo
    May be compatible
  • Low-carb
    May be compatible
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Typically incompatible
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Typically incompatible
The ingredient profile identifies an animal-derived food or derivative.
Vegetarian · Typically incompatible
The profile identifies animal flesh, seafood or a derivative excluded by a vegetarian diet.
Pescatarian · Typically compatible
Seafood fits this pescatarian definition. Added meat-based stock or other ingredients would need checking separately.
Keto · May be compatible
The plain form may fit a carbohydrate-restricted diet. Check the portion, added sugar, coatings and sauces against the nutrition values above.
Paleo · May be compatible
May fit a paleo pattern, depending on the cut or form, processing and added ingredients.
Low-carb · May be compatible
The plain form may fit a carbohydrate-restricted diet. Check the portion, added sugar, coatings and sauces against the nutrition values above.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Typically incompatible
This profile identifies shellfish, which does not meet the kosher fish criteria.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: Pacific Nutrient Database 2020 — 01.1.3.4.2_99 ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .