What to Eat with Sushi – Sides, Soups and Small Plates

All 38 ideas

On the plate and in the dipping dish 6

Grated daikon A small mound beside the fish, with a drop of soy sauce on it.
Pickled daikon (takuan) A few slices at the edge of the plate, for crunch between rolls.
Pickled ginger (gari) Eat a slice between pieces, not on top of them.
Soy sauce Pour a little into the dish and dip the fish side, not the rice.
Sweet soy glaze (tsume) Brush a little over a cooked topping and skip the dipping dish.
Wasabi Dab a little on the fish, and keep it out of the soy sauce dish.

Soups and noodles 4

Clear clam soup A light broth to start with, before the first piece.
Cold buckwheat noodles (soba) with dipping sauce A tray to share turns a few rolls into a full dinner.
Miso soup A small bowl each, sipped between pieces.
Savory egg custard (chawanmushi) Serve it hot in its cup, with a small spoon.

Salads and cold plates 10

Crab and cucumber salad Cut the cucumber into fine strips and dress it lightly.
Edamame Salt the pods and set them out before the sushi arrives.
Octopus in vinegar Slice it thin and lay a few pieces over cucumber.
Salmon skin salad Crisp the skin just before serving so it stays crunchy on the leaves.
Sashimi A few slices of plain fish first, then the sushi.
Seared tuna, sliced thin Fan the slices over shredded daikon.
Seaweed salad A small heap on the side, with sesame seeds on top.
Simmered pumpkin Serve it at room temperature, a wedge or two each.
Squid salad Serve it cold in a small dish to pass round.
Tuna poke A small bowl in the middle, for anyone still hungry after the rolls.

Hot dishes from the same menu 10

Fried soft-shell crab Cut it in pieces so everyone gets a crisp leg.
Fried tofu in broth (agedashi dofu) Eat it first, while the crust still holds.
Grilled yellowtail collar Pick the meat off the bone with chopsticks and add lemon.
Japanese fried chicken (karaage) A squeeze of lemon and a plate in the middle of the table.
Miso-glazed eggplant Halve it lengthwise and eat it hot with a spoon.
Pan-fried dumplings (gyoza) Share a plate while the rolls are being made.
Salt-grilled salmon One fillet, flaked at the table, is enough to share.
Seared beef, sliced thin Lay the slices out with grated ginger and scallion.
Shrimp and vegetable tempura Bring it out the moment it is fried, with its own dipping sauce.
Teriyaki chicken Slice it over rice for anyone at the table who skips raw fish.

Something sweet after 5

Green tea ice cream A single small scoop to finish.
Melon slices Chill the melon and cut it into thin wedges.
Mochi ice cream Let the pieces soften for a moment before biting in.
Sweet rice dumplings on a skewer (dango) One skewer each, with the last cup of tea.
Yuzu sorbet Sharp and cold, good after rich rolls.

Drinks 3

Hot green tea Pour it all through the meal and refill often.
Roasted green tea (hojicha) A toasty, mellow cup for the end of the meal.
Yuzu soda Serve it over ice with the first plates.

How it works

What to eat with sushi? It is often served with pickled ginger, wasabi and soy sauce, and in Japan always with green tea. These 38 ideas add soups, cold plates, hot dishes and sweets.

Read the full guide

What to eat sushi with, by custom

Pickled ginger is eaten between pieces to clear the palate. Soy sauce is the usual dip: turn a piece over so the fish touches the sauce and the rice stays dry. Traditionally the chef has already added the wasabi. Daikon radish, grated or pickled, is a popular garnish.

What to eat with sushi for dinner

Start with something small and salty, such as edamame or a seaweed salad. Add one soup and one hot dish for the table, tempura or grilled salmon, and keep the sushi at the centre. Finish with fruit or a small sweet.

Give hot dishes their own plates so they do not warm the fish.

Questions and answers

What do you eat with sushi at a restaurant?

Order what is a bother to cook at home: clear clam soup to start, then fried tofu in broth, a grilled yellowtail collar or fried soft-shell crab to share.

What is good to eat with sushi if someone does not eat raw fish?

Teriyaki chicken, Japanese fried chicken, salt-grilled salmon, pan-fried dumplings and tempura are all cooked. So is chawanmushi, a savory egg custard eaten with a spoon.

What can I eat with sushi from the supermarket?

Add things that take minutes: edamame, seaweed salad, a crab and cucumber salad and a pot of green tea. Melon slices or mochi ice cream finish the tray.

What do you drink with sushi?

Without alcohol: hot green tea, which sushi counters call agari. Roasted green tea gives a mellower cup, and yuzu soda is a cold option.

Notes

Results are random and meant for fun, practice and planning. Do not rely on them for a decision that matters.

More notes about this page

Facts on this page were checked against the sources named under the list. If you spot a mistake, tell us through the contact page and we will check it and correct the page.

How this list was compiled: All 38 ideas and the line under each were written for this page, and no list was copied. The lines are our own serving advice, not facts from a source. The customs the page names were checked on 2026-10-13 in Wikipedia. Sushi (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sushi): soy sauce, wasabi and gari, which is pickled ginger, often come with it; popular garnishes are takuan, which is pickled daikon, and daikon radish; gari is eaten in between sushi courses to cleanse the palate; in Japan sushi always comes with green tea, which sushi vocabulary calls agari; soy sauce is the usual condiment, and traditional etiquette suggests turning the sushi over to dip the topping alone; traditionally the chef adds wasabi while preparing the sushi; sushi may be garnished with grated daikon or seaweed salad; tsume is a thick, sweet sauce, mostly soy sauce. Customs and etiquette in Japanese dining (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Customs_and_etiquette_in_Japanese_dining): put a little soy sauce in the dish and add more as needed. Chawanmushi (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chawanmushi): a savoury egg custard, one of the few Japanese dishes eaten with a spoon. Hōjicha (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C5%8Djicha): a roasted Japanese green tea. Dango (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dango): rice flour dumplings, served on a skewer and often with green tea. Soba (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soba): buckwheat noodles, eaten hot in soup or cold with a sauce for dipping. Left out on purpose: alcohol, brand names and recipes. Licence: own work