Plum + Lime
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 193 recipes, and they share 237 flavor molecules: the top 10% of all ingredient pairs.
Do plum and lime go together?
Yes. 193 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 237 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 10% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
More than half of lime's flavor molecules (237 of 299) also occur in plum. Among the shared key aromas are eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal) and alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
What each one brings
plum
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 25% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 10% for lime. It carries 144 molecules lime doesn't have.
lime
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 15% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 5% for plum. It carries 62 molecules plum doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Coriander: the best fit for both, top 10% of pairs with plum, top 1% with lime.
- Mango: top 4% of pairs with plum, top 1% with lime.
- Avocado: top 10% of pairs with plum, top 1% with lime.
- Lemon grass: top 15% of pairs with plum, top 1% with lime.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with plum and lime
Almost always mains: 12 of the 15 recipes with a course label are mains.
Can you swap one for the other?
Only partly. Most of lime's flavor molecules (237 of 299) are also found in plum, but plum has 144 that lime lacks. Lime gives you part of plum's character without most of its fruit. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 237 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 144 only in plum and the 62 only in lime.
Plum and lime questions
Do plum and lime go together?
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 193 recipes, and they share 237 flavor molecules: the top 10% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do plum and lime taste good together?
More than half of lime's flavor molecules (237 of 299) also occur in plum. Among the shared key aromas are eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal) and alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
What goes with plum and lime?
Coriander is the best third ingredient: top 10% of pairs with plum and top 1% with lime. Mango and avocado also fit both.
What can you make with plum and lime?
Almost always mains: 12 of the 15 recipes with a course label are mains. Common dishes include Lime Vinaigrette I, Avocado and Wehani Rice Salad, Barbados Pork Chops, Corn 'n' Peas Pasta Salad.
Can I use lime instead of plum?
Only partly. Most of lime's flavor molecules (237 of 299) are also found in plum, but plum has 144 that lime lacks. Lime gives you part of plum'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: Plum vs Lime. https://compkitchen.com/compare/plum-vs-lime. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_plum_vs_lime_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Plum vs Lime},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/plum-vs-lime},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.