Leek + Marjoram
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 118 recipes, and they share 212 flavor molecules: the top 3% of all ingredient pairs.
Do leek and marjoram go together?
Yes. 118 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 212 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 3% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
Almost everything leek carries, marjoram has too: 212 of leek's 261 flavor molecules also occur in marjoram. Among the shared key aromas are 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy) and trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
What each one brings
leek
The sulfurous side. Sulfurous notes make up 8% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 2% for marjoram. It carries 49 molecules marjoram doesn't have.
marjoram
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 14% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 6% for leek. It carries 93 molecules leek doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Thyme: the best fit for both, top 1% of pairs with leek, top 1% with marjoram.
- Winter savory: top 2% of pairs with leek, top 1% with marjoram.
- Turnip: top 1% of pairs with leek, top 2% with marjoram.
- Chervil: top 1% of pairs with leek, top 3% with marjoram.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with leek and marjoram
We have no browsable recipe that lists both leek and marjoram.
Can you swap one for the other?
Only partly. Most of leek's flavor molecules (212 of 261) are also found in marjoram, but marjoram has 93 that leek lacks. Leek gives you part of marjoram's character without most of its herbal side. This compares flavor only; texture, moisture and the job each does in a dish matter too.
All 212 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 49 only in leek and the 93 only in marjoram.
Leek and marjoram questions
Do leek and marjoram go together?
A proven pairing. Cooks put them together in 118 recipes, and they share 212 flavor molecules: the top 3% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do leek and marjoram taste good together?
Almost everything leek carries, marjoram has too: 212 of leek's 261 flavor molecules also occur in marjoram. Among the shared key aromas are 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy) and trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
What goes with leek and marjoram?
Thyme is the best third ingredient: top 1% of pairs with leek and top 1% with marjoram. Winter savory and turnip also fit both.
Can I use marjoram instead of leek?
Only partly. Most of leek's flavor molecules (212 of 261) are also found in marjoram, but marjoram has 93 that leek lacks. Leek gives you part of marjoram's character without most of its herbal side. 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: Leek vs Marjoram. https://compkitchen.com/compare/leek-vs-marjoram. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_leek_vs_marjoram_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Leek vs Marjoram},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/leek-vs-marjoram},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.