Nutmeg + Cinnamon
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes, and they share 259 flavor molecules: the top 1% of all ingredient pairs.
Do nutmeg and cinnamon go together?
Yes. 11,917 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 259 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 1% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
Almost everything nutmeg carries, cinnamon has too: 259 of nutmeg's 301 flavor molecules also occur in cinnamon. Among the shared key aromas are estragole (anise, licorice) and beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
What each one brings
nutmeg
The floral side. Floral notes make up 14% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 10% for cinnamon. It carries 42 molecules cinnamon doesn't have.
cinnamon
The fresh, green side. Green notes make up 12% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 8% for nutmeg. It carries 65 molecules nutmeg doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Clove: the best fit for both, top 1% of pairs with nutmeg, top 1% with cinnamon.
- Allspice: top 1% of pairs with nutmeg, top 1% with cinnamon.
- Cardamom: top 1% of pairs with nutmeg, top 1% with cinnamon.
- Star anise: top 2% of pairs with nutmeg, top 1% with cinnamon.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with nutmeg and cinnamon
Mostly desserts: 664 of the 925 recipes with a course label are desserts (from a sample of 3,000 recipes that use both).
Can you swap one for the other?
Fairly well, for flavor. Each carries most of the other's flavor molecules (86% of nutmeg's and 80% of cinnamon's are shared). This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 259 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 42 only in nutmeg and the 65 only in cinnamon.
Nutmeg and cinnamon questions
Do nutmeg and cinnamon go together?
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 11,917 recipes, and they share 259 flavor molecules: the top 1% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do nutmeg and cinnamon taste good together?
Almost everything nutmeg carries, cinnamon has too: 259 of nutmeg's 301 flavor molecules also occur in cinnamon. Among the shared key aromas are estragole (anise, licorice) and beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
What goes with nutmeg and cinnamon?
Clove is the best third ingredient: top 1% of pairs with nutmeg and top 1% with cinnamon. Allspice and cardamom also fit both.
What can you make with nutmeg and cinnamon?
Mostly desserts: 664 of the 925 recipes with a course label are desserts (from a sample of 3,000 recipes that use both). Common dishes include Apple Cinnamon Yogurt Muffins, Apple Streusel Cobbler with Nuts and Oats and Cinnamon, Cincinnati Five-Way Chili, Cinnamon Cake.
Can I use cinnamon instead of nutmeg?
Fairly well, for flavor. Each carries most of the other's flavor molecules (86% of nutmeg's and 80% of cinnamon's are shared). 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: Nutmeg vs Cinnamon. https://compkitchen.com/compare/nutmeg-vs-cinnamon. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_nutmeg_vs_cinnamon_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Nutmeg vs Cinnamon},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/nutmeg-vs-cinnamon},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.