Clove + Raisin
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 4,070 recipes, and they share 111 flavor molecules: the top 9% of all ingredient pairs.
Do clove and raisin go together?
Yes. 4,070 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 111 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 9% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
Almost everything raisin carries, clove has too: 111 of raisin's 129 flavor molecules also occur in clove. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel) and 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
What each one brings
clove
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 17% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 7% for raisin. It carries 200 molecules raisin doesn't have.
raisin
The tartness. Sour notes make up 18% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 12% for clove. It carries 18 molecules clove doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Cinnamon: the best fit for both, top 1% of pairs with clove, top 1% with raisin.
- Nutmeg: top 1% of pairs with clove, top 6% with raisin.
- Allspice: top 1% of pairs with clove, top 10% with raisin.
- Cardamom: top 1% of pairs with clove, top 8% with raisin.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with clove and raisin
Mostly desserts: 3 of the 5 recipes with a course label are desserts.
Can you swap one for the other?
Only partly. Almost all of raisin's flavor molecules (111 of 129) are also found in clove, but clove has 200 that raisin lacks. Raisin 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 111 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 200 only in clove and the 18 only in raisin.
Clove and raisin questions
Do clove and raisin go together?
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 4,070 recipes, and they share 111 flavor molecules: the top 9% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do clove and raisin taste good together?
Almost everything raisin carries, clove has too: 111 of raisin's 129 flavor molecules also occur in clove. Among the shared key aromas are ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel) and 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
What goes with clove and raisin?
Cinnamon is the best third ingredient: top 1% of pairs with clove and top 1% with raisin. Nutmeg and allspice also fit both.
What can you make with clove and raisin?
Mostly desserts: 3 of the 5 recipes with a course label are desserts. Common dishes include Eggless Fruit Cake, Frances Bissell's Low-Fat Christmas Pudding, Mincemeat, Moulded Pears.
Can I use raisin instead of clove?
Only partly. Almost all of raisin's flavor molecules (111 of 129) are also found in clove, but clove has 200 that raisin lacks. Raisin 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: Clove vs Raisin. https://compkitchen.com/compare/clove-vs-raisin. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_clove_vs_raisin_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Clove vs Raisin},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/clove-vs-raisin},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.