Mushroom + Mace
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 2,529 recipes, and they share 14 flavor molecules: the top 21% of all ingredient pairs.
Do mushroom and mace go together?
Yes. 2,529 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 14 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 21% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
They overlap on 14 flavor molecules: 41% of mace's 34. Among the shared key aromas are alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine) and linalool (floral, citrus). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What each one brings
mushroom
The tartness. Sour notes make up 12% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 3% for mace. It carries 412 molecules mace doesn't have.
mace
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 31% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 7% for mushroom. It carries 20 molecules mushroom doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Nutmeg: the best fit for both, top 13% of pairs with mushroom, top 4% with mace.
- Clove: top 10% of pairs with mushroom, top 6% with mace.
- Thyme: top 5% of pairs with mushroom, top 14% with mace.
- Marjoram: top 8% of pairs with mushroom, top 12% with mace.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with mushroom and mace
Almost always mains: 46 of the 51 recipes with a course label are mains.
Can you swap one for the other?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: mushroom has 412 molecules mace doesn't, and mace has 20 that mushroom 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 14 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 412 only in mushroom and the 20 only in mace.
Mushroom and mace questions
Do mushroom and mace go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 2,529 recipes, and they share 14 flavor molecules: the top 21% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do mushroom and mace taste good together?
They overlap on 14 flavor molecules: 41% of mace's 34. Among the shared key aromas are alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine) and linalool (floral, citrus). Most of what they share is background chemistry many foods carry, so the overlap does little for the smell.
What goes with mushroom and mace?
Nutmeg is the best third ingredient: top 13% of pairs with mushroom and top 4% with mace. Clove and thyme also fit both.
What can you make with mushroom and mace?
Almost always mains: 46 of the 51 recipes with a course label are mains. Common dishes include Baked Mushrooms, Broiled Beef and Mushroom Sauce, Brown Mushroom Sauce, Mushroom Sauce.
Can I use mace instead of mushroom?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: mushroom has 412 molecules mace doesn't, and mace has 20 that mushroom 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: Mushroom vs Mace. https://compkitchen.com/compare/mushroom-vs-mace. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_mushroom_vs_mace_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Mushroom vs Mace},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/mushroom-vs-mace},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.