Mace + Tarragon
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 234 recipes, and they share 20 flavor molecules: the top 19% of all ingredient pairs.
Do mace and tarragon go together?
Yes. 234 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 20 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 19% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
More than half of mace's flavor molecules (20 of 34) also occur in tarragon. Among the shared key aromas are methyleugenol (clove, spice) and alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
What each one brings
mace
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 31% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 14% for tarragon. It carries 14 molecules tarragon doesn't have.
tarragon
The tartness. Sour notes make up 15% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 3% for mace. It carries 250 molecules mace doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Nutmeg: the best fit for both, top 4% of pairs with mace, top 4% with tarragon.
- Marjoram: top 12% of pairs with mace, top 1% with tarragon.
- Chervil: top 27% of pairs with mace, top 1% with tarragon.
- Winter savory: top 11% of pairs with mace, top 1% with tarragon.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with mace and tarragon
Mostly mains: 3 of the 4 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 14 molecules tarragon doesn't, and tarragon has 250 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 20 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 14 only in mace and the 250 only in tarragon.
Mace and tarragon questions
Do mace and tarragon go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 234 recipes, and they share 20 flavor molecules: the top 19% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do mace and tarragon taste good together?
More than half of mace's flavor molecules (20 of 34) also occur in tarragon. Among the shared key aromas are methyleugenol (clove, spice) and alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
What goes with mace and tarragon?
Nutmeg is the best third ingredient: top 4% of pairs with mace and top 4% with tarragon. Marjoram and chervil also fit both.
What can you make with mace and tarragon?
Mostly mains: 3 of the 4 recipes with a course label are mains. Common dishes include Brown Sauce, Italian Mutton Cutlets, Jerusalem Fish Balls, Pepper Pot.
Can I use tarragon instead of mace?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: mace has 14 molecules tarragon doesn't, and tarragon has 250 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 Tarragon. https://compkitchen.com/compare/mace-vs-tarragon. Accessed 2026-11-07.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_mace_vs_tarragon_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Mace vs Tarragon},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/mace-vs-tarragon},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-07}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.