Clove + Cider
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 1,683 recipes, and they share 26 flavor molecules: the top 14% of all ingredient pairs.
Do clove and cider go together?
Yes. 1,683 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 26 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 14% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
They overlap on 26 flavor molecules: 24% of cider's 108. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine) and ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What each one brings
clove
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 11% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 1% for cider. It carries 285 molecules cider doesn't have.
cider
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 55% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 17% for clove. It carries 82 molecules clove doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Allspice: the best fit for both, top 1% of pairs with clove, top 14% with cider.
- Cinnamon: top 1% of pairs with clove, top 16% with cider.
- Apple: top 6% of pairs with clove, top 2% with cider.
- Quince: top 2% of pairs with clove, top 12% with cider.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with clove and cider
Spread across courses: mains lead with 61 of the 144 recipes with a course label, then desserts (39).
Can you swap one for the other?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: clove has 285 molecules cider doesn't, and cider has 82 that clove doesn't. Treat them as partners, not stand-ins. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 26 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 285 only in clove and the 82 only in cider.
Clove and cider questions
Do clove and cider go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 1,683 recipes, and they share 26 flavor molecules: the top 14% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do clove and cider taste good together?
They overlap on 26 flavor molecules: 24% of cider's 108. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine) and ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What goes with clove and cider?
Allspice is the best third ingredient: top 1% of pairs with clove and top 14% with cider. Cinnamon and apple also fit both.
What can you make with clove and cider?
Spread across courses: mains lead with 61 of the 144 recipes with a course label, then desserts (39). Common dishes include Apple Cider Chicken Stew, Ciderkrydderikage, Cranberry Spiced Cider, Hot Apple Cider.
Can I use cider instead of clove?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: clove has 285 molecules cider doesn't, and cider has 82 that clove doesn't. Treat them as partners, not stand-ins. 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: Clove vs Cider. https://compkitchen.com/compare/clove-vs-cider. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_clove_vs_cider_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Clove vs Cider},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/clove-vs-cider},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.