Pear + Medlar
Promising but untested: they share 205 flavor molecules (strong aroma overlap), yet no recipe in our pairing index uses both. They rank in the top 27% of all ingredient pairs.
Do pear and medlar go together?
Possibly. No recipe in our pairing index uses both, and they share 205 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 27% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
Almost everything medlar carries, pear has too: 205 of medlar's 205 flavor molecules also occur in pear. Among the shared key aromas are coumarin (sweet, hay) and 2-methylbutyraldehyde (malty, chocolate).
What each one brings
pear
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 25% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 10% for medlar. It carries 156 molecules medlar doesn't have.
medlar
The roast. Roasted notes make up 9% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 5% for pear. Every molecule it carries is also in pear.
Add a third ingredient
- Quince: the best fit for both, top 1% of pairs with pear, top 13% with medlar.
- Cinnamon: top 4% of pairs with pear, top 11% with medlar.
- Butternut squash: top 13% of pairs with pear, top 4% with medlar.
- Chestnut: top 9% of pairs with pear, top 7% with medlar.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with pear and medlar
We have no browsable recipe that lists both pear and medlar. With this much shared aroma, it is the kind of novel pairing worth testing.
Can you swap one for the other?
Only partly. Almost all of medlar's flavor molecules (205 of 205) are also found in pear, but pear has 156 that medlar lacks. Medlar gives you part of pear's character without most of its fruit. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 205 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 156 only in pear and the 0 only in medlar.
Pear and medlar questions
Do pear and medlar go together?
Promising but untested: they share 205 flavor molecules (strong aroma overlap), yet no recipe in our pairing index uses both. They rank in the top 27% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do pear and medlar taste good together?
Almost everything medlar carries, pear has too: 205 of medlar's 205 flavor molecules also occur in pear. Among the shared key aromas are coumarin (sweet, hay) and 2-methylbutyraldehyde (malty, chocolate).
What goes with pear and medlar?
Quince is the best third ingredient: top 1% of pairs with pear and top 13% with medlar. Cinnamon and butternut squash also fit both.
Can I use medlar instead of pear?
Only partly. Almost all of medlar's flavor molecules (205 of 205) are also found in pear, but pear has 156 that medlar lacks. Medlar gives you part of pear'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: Pear vs Medlar. https://compkitchen.com/compare/pear-vs-medlar. Accessed 2026-11-07.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_pear_vs_medlar_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Pear vs Medlar},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/pear-vs-medlar},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-07}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.