Mace + Onion
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 7,078 recipes, and they share 7 flavor molecules: the top 17% of all ingredient pairs.
Do mace and onion go together?
Yes. 7,078 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 7 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 17% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
They overlap on 7 flavor molecules: 21% of mace's 34. Among the shared key aromas are eugenol (clove, spicy) and geraniol (rose, geranium). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What each one brings
mace
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 31% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 4% for onion. It carries 27 molecules onion doesn't have.
onion
The sulfurous side. Sulfurous notes make up 13% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 0% for mace. It carries 358 molecules mace doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Nutmeg: the best fit for both, top 4% of pairs with mace, top 16% with onion.
- Clove: top 6% of pairs with mace, top 13% with onion.
- Carrot: top 15% of pairs with mace, top 6% with onion.
- Allspice: top 7% of pairs with mace, top 13% with onion.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with mace and onion
Almost always mains: 221 of the 271 recipes with a course label are mains.
Can you swap one for the other?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: mace has 27 molecules onion doesn't, and onion has 358 that mace 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 7 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 27 only in mace and the 358 only in onion.
Mace and onion questions
Do mace and onion go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 7,078 recipes, and they share 7 flavor molecules: the top 17% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do mace and onion taste good together?
They overlap on 7 flavor molecules: 21% of mace's 34. Among the shared key aromas are eugenol (clove, spicy) and geraniol (rose, geranium). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What goes with mace and onion?
Nutmeg is the best third ingredient: top 4% of pairs with mace and top 16% with onion. Clove and carrot also fit both.
What can you make with mace and onion?
Almost always mains: 221 of the 271 recipes with a course label are mains. Common dishes include Onion Soup, Spanish Onions--Pickled, HOW WE COOK IN TENNESSEE, Chili Sauce.
Can I use onion instead of mace?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: mace has 27 molecules onion doesn't, and onion has 358 that mace 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: Mace vs Onion. https://compkitchen.com/compare/mace-vs-onion. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_mace_vs_onion_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Mace vs Onion},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/mace-vs-onion},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.