Currant + Mace
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 1,791 recipes, and they share 5 flavor molecules: the top 12% of all ingredient pairs.
Do currant and mace go together?
Yes. 1,791 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 5 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 12% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
They overlap on 5 flavor molecules: 15% of mace's 34. Among the shared key aromas are alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine) and beta-pinene (pine, resin). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What each one brings
currant
The fruit. Fruity notes make up 25% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 12% for mace. It carries 38 molecules mace doesn't have.
mace
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 31% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 8% for currant. It carries 29 molecules currant doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Allspice: the best fit for both, top 10% of pairs with currant, top 7% with mace.
- Nutmeg: top 16% of pairs with currant, top 4% with mace.
- Clove: top 15% of pairs with currant, top 6% with mace.
- Red currant: top 5% of pairs with currant, top 23% with mace.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with currant and mace
Mostly mains: 3 of the 4 recipes with a course label are mains.
Can you swap one for the other?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: currant has 38 molecules mace doesn't, and mace has 29 that currant doesn't. Treat them as partners, not stand-ins. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 5 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 38 only in currant and the 29 only in mace.
Currant and mace questions
Do currant and mace go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 1,791 recipes, and they share 5 flavor molecules: the top 12% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do currant and mace taste good together?
They overlap on 5 flavor molecules: 15% of mace's 34. Among the shared key aromas are alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine) and beta-pinene (pine, resin). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What goes with currant and mace?
Allspice is the best third ingredient: top 10% of pairs with currant and top 7% with mace. Nutmeg and clove also fit both.
What can you make with currant and mace?
Mostly mains: 3 of the 4 recipes with a course label are mains. Common dishes include Mixed Meat, Sauce for Venison, Beef, or Any Meat, Sauces for M'Bats, Stewed Water Turtles, or Terrapins.
Can I use mace instead of currant?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: currant has 38 molecules mace doesn't, and mace has 29 that currant doesn't. Treat them as partners, not stand-ins. 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: Currant vs Mace. https://compkitchen.com/compare/currant-vs-mace. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_currant_vs_mace_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Currant vs Mace},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/currant-vs-mace},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.