Japanese Appetizer Recipes

In an ichiju-sansai meal, rice comes with soup and three dishes that you eat together. There's usually no separate appetizer course, so many of the foods we call Japanese appetizers fit just as naturally beside the main dish. At an izakaya, a Japanese pub, small plates like these become something to nibble on with drinks.

I like that flexibility. Chilled tofu with freshly grated ginger can be a side at dinner or something refreshing beside a cold beer. Gyoza can round out a meal or arrive sizzling as a shared plate. The recipes below work either way, depending on what you feel like serving.