watasi ha sarada ni goma wo kakete tabemasu.

は marks 私 as the topic of the sentence.

So 私は means something like as for me or I in this sentence.

It does not directly mark the grammatical subject the same way English does. In beginner translations, it often ends up as I, but its real job is to set the topic.

So:

• 私は = as for me / I
• サラダにごまをかけて食べます = eat salad after putting sesame on it

Together: As for me, I eat salad with sesame on it.

In this sentence, に marks the thing that receives the topping.

With かける, Japanese often uses this pattern:

• A に B を かける
  = to put/pour/sprinkle B onto A

So here:

• サラダに = onto the salad
• ごまを = sesame
• かけて = sprinkle/put on, and then...

So サラダにごまをかける means to sprinkle sesame on the salad.

を marks the direct object of the verb かける.

In other words, ごま is the thing being applied or sprinkled.

Compare:

• サラダに = the target, destination, or surface
• ごまを = the thing being put onto it

That is why the sentence uses both particles:

• サラダにごまをかける
  = put sesame onto the salad

かけて is the て-form of かけます.

The verb かける has several meanings depending on context, but here it means to put on, to pour on, or to sprinkle on.

So:

• かけます = sprinkle/put on
• かけて = sprinkle/put on and...

In this sentence, it connects two actions:

1. put sesame on the salad
2. eat it

So かけて食べます means putting sesame on it and then eating it.

Because the speaker is describing two connected actions:

1. ごまをかけて = sprinkle sesame on it
2. 食べます = eat it

The て-form is commonly used to link actions in sequence.
So this structure means:

• sprinkle sesame on the salad and eat it
• or more naturally in English, eat the salad with sesame on it

If the sentence ended with かけます, it would just mean I put/sprinkle sesame on the salad, without mentioning eating it.

Usually, yes.

ごま normally means sesame. In food contexts, it often refers to:

• sesame seeds
• ground sesame
• sometimes sesame dressing or sesame flavor, depending on context

In this sentence, the most natural image is sprinkling sesame seeds or ground sesame onto a salad.

Context matters, but a learner should usually understand ごま here as sesame.

Yes, very often.

Japanese frequently leaves out words that are understood from context. So in everyday conversation, you might simply hear:

• サラダにごまをかけて食べます。

That would still naturally mean I eat salad with sesame on it, if it is already clear who is being talked about.

Including 私 can make the sentence clearer, more contrastive, or slightly more textbook-like.

Yes, it is grammatically natural.

It clearly means:

• I put sesame on salad and eat it
• more naturally: I eat salad with sesame on it

That said, depending on the exact situation, native speakers might also say things like:

• サラダにごまをかけて食べる。
• サラダにごまをかけて食べます。

Both are fine; the version with ます is polite.

Some speakers might choose a different word if they specifically mean sesame dressing, but with plain ごま, this sentence is still natural.

食べます is the polite non-past form of 食べる.

So the sentence is in polite style:

• 食べる = plain/casual
• 食べます = polite

Likewise:

• かける = plain
• かけて = て-form, neutral in itself

A plain-style version of the full sentence would be:

• 私はサラダにごまをかけて食べる。

A polite version is:

• 私はサラダにごまをかけて食べます。

It can mean either, depending on context.

Japanese non-past forms often cover both:

• present habitual actions
• future actions

So this sentence could mean:

• I eat salad with sesame on it (habitually / generally)
• I will eat the salad after putting sesame on it (future situation)

Without more context, many learners interpret it as a habitual statement.

Not quite.

That English translation sounds unnatural and slightly changes the focus.

The Japanese structure is:

• salad = the thing receiving the sesame
• sesame = the thing added
• eat = the final action

So more natural translations are:

• I put sesame on my salad and eat it.
• I eat salad with sesame on it.
• I sprinkle sesame on salad before eating it.

Those reflect the Japanese structure more accurately.

In this sentence, に is the standard and best choice.

That is because かける often uses に for the surface or target:

• パンにバターをぬる = spread butter on bread
• ご飯にふりかけをかける = put furikake on rice
• サラダにごまをかける = sprinkle sesame on salad

A learner might expect で or something else, but に is the natural particle with this verb pattern here.

So the safest pattern to remember is:

• A に B を かける = put/pour/sprinkle B onto A