Sesame + Clove
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 353 recipes, and they share 213 flavor molecules: the top 13% of all ingredient pairs.
Do sesame and clove go together?
Yes. 353 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 213 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 13% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
More than half of sesame's flavor molecules (213 of 295) also occur in clove. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel) and coumarin (sweet, hay).
What each one brings
sesame
The tartness. Sour notes make up 19% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 12% for clove. It carries 82 molecules clove doesn't have.
clove
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 17% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 10% for sesame. It carries 98 molecules sesame doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Ginger: the best fit for both, top 4% of pairs with sesame, top 1% with clove.
- Cinnamon: top 10% of pairs with sesame, top 1% with clove.
- Welsh onion: top 1% of pairs with sesame, top 10% with clove.
- Shiitake: top 1% of pairs with sesame, top 10% with clove.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with sesame and clove
Almost always mains: 40 of the 45 recipes with a course label are mains.
Can you swap one for the other?
Only partly. Most of sesame's flavor molecules (213 of 295) are also found in clove, but clove has 98 that sesame lacks. Sesame gives you part of clove's character without most of its fruit. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 213 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 82 only in sesame and the 98 only in clove.
Sesame and clove questions
Do sesame and clove go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 353 recipes, and they share 213 flavor molecules: the top 13% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do sesame and clove taste good together?
More than half of sesame's flavor molecules (213 of 295) also occur in clove. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel) and coumarin (sweet, hay).
What goes with sesame and clove?
Ginger is the best third ingredient: top 4% of pairs with sesame and top 1% with clove. Cinnamon and welsh onion also fit both.
What can you make with sesame and clove?
Almost always mains: 40 of the 45 recipes with a course label are mains. Common dishes include Sesame-Crusted Catfish with Sweet and Sour Sauce, Aromatic Rice Salad with Mango Chutney, Aubergine, Barbecue Rack of Lamb with Mint.
Can I use clove instead of sesame?
Only partly. Most of sesame's flavor molecules (213 of 295) are also found in clove, but clove has 98 that sesame lacks. Sesame gives you part of clove'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: Sesame vs Clove. https://compkitchen.com/compare/sesame-vs-clove. Accessed 2026-11-05.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_sesame_vs_clove_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Sesame vs Clove},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/sesame-vs-clove},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-05}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.