Banana + Raisin
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 38 recipes, and they share 114 flavor molecules: the top 19% of all ingredient pairs.
Do banana and raisin go together?
Yes. 38 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 114 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 19% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
Almost everything raisin carries, banana has too: 114 of raisin's 129 flavor molecules also occur in banana. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel) and 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
What each one brings
banana
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 28% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 7% for raisin. It carries 243 molecules raisin doesn't have.
raisin
The fresh, green side. Green notes make up 10% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 7% for banana. It carries 15 molecules banana doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Fig: the best fit for both, top 2% of pairs with banana, top 7% with raisin.
- Cinnamon: top 11% of pairs with banana, top 1% with raisin.
- Vanilla: top 1% of pairs with banana, top 12% with raisin.
- Almond: top 12% of pairs with banana, top 2% with raisin.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with banana and raisin
Almost always desserts: 4 of the 4 recipes with a course label are desserts.
Can you swap one for the other?
Only partly. Almost all of raisin's flavor molecules (114 of 129) are also found in banana, but banana has 243 that raisin lacks. Raisin gives you part of banana's character without most of its fruit. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 114 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 243 only in banana and the 15 only in raisin.
Banana and raisin questions
Do banana and raisin go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 38 recipes, and they share 114 flavor molecules: the top 19% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do banana and raisin taste good together?
Almost everything raisin carries, banana has too: 114 of raisin's 129 flavor molecules also occur in banana. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel) and 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
What goes with banana and raisin?
Fig is the best third ingredient: top 2% of pairs with banana and top 7% with raisin. Cinnamon and vanilla also fit both.
What can you make with banana and raisin?
Almost always desserts: 4 of the 4 recipes with a course label are desserts. Common dishes include Mamadou's Banana Glace, Sweet Banana Bruschetta, Haroset Afghani-style, Muffins I.
Can I use raisin instead of banana?
Only partly. Almost all of raisin's flavor molecules (114 of 129) are also found in banana, but banana has 243 that raisin lacks. Raisin gives you part of banana's character without most of its fruit. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
Compare other ingredients
Ranks compare this pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. Molecule counts are what the studies and databases we aggregate have reported for each ingredient: a measure of coverage, not a full census. How we score pairs
Cite this analysis
Compound Kitchen (2026). Compound similarity analysis: Banana vs Raisin. https://compkitchen.com/compare/banana-vs-raisin. Accessed 2026-11-06.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_banana_vs_raisin_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Banana vs Raisin},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/banana-vs-raisin},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-06}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.