ごま塩(しお)

ごましお
noun
sesame salt; salt and pepper (hair)
foodappearance
1. sesame salt; gomashio
A condiment made by mixing roasted sesame seeds with salt. Commonly sprinkled on rice, onigiri, and other Japanese dishes.
ごはんにごま塩(しお)をかける。
To sprinkle sesame salt on rice.
おにぎりにはごま塩(しお)が一番(いちばん)合(あ)う。
Sesame salt goes best with onigiri.
手作(てづく)りのごま塩(しお)は市販(しはん)のものより風味(ふうみ)がいい。
Homemade sesame salt has better flavor than store-bought.
2. salt-and-pepper; grizzled (hair)
Used to describe hair that is a mixture of black and white, resembling the appearance of sesame salt. Refers to greying hair that has not yet turned fully white.
ごま塩(しお)頭(あたま)のおじいさん。
An old man with salt-and-pepper hair.
父(ちち)は五十代(ごじゅうだい)でごま塩(しお)頭(あたま)になった。
My father's hair turned salt-and-pepper in his fifties.
ごま塩(しお)頭(あたま)が似合(にあ)う渋(しぶ)い俳優(はいゆう)だ。
He's a distinguished actor who looks good with salt-and-pepper hair.

Written in full kanji as 胡麻塩(ごましお), but the ごま part is most commonly written in hiragana. The condiment is a staple of Japanese home cooking, especially associated with rice balls and bento boxes.

Common collocations

  • ごま塩(しお)をかける: to sprinkle sesame salt
  • ごま塩(しお)頭(あたま): salt-and-pepper hair
  • ごま塩(しお)おにぎり: sesame salt rice ball
  • 手作(てづく)りごま塩(しお): homemade sesame salt

Similar words

  • ふりかけ: rice seasoning — broader category that includes gomashio as one type
  • 白髪交(しらがま)じり: grey-streaked hair — more neutral description of greying hair

Cultural note

Gomashio is also used in shojin ryori (Buddhist vegetarian cuisine) and macrobiotic cooking. At celebrations like Sekihan (red rice), gomashio is the traditional accompaniment.

Related Words

Compare: ふりかけ (rice seasoning)
general
Added 2026.4.8 23:17 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
22500/22977_gomashio