Raisin + Sugar
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 12,481 recipes, and they share 33 flavor molecules: the top 13% of all ingredient pairs.
Do raisin and sugar go together?
Yes. 12,481 recipes in our collection combine them, and they share 33 flavor molecules. That places them in the top 13% of every ingredient pair we score.
Why they work
More than half of sugar's flavor molecules (33 of 65) also occur in raisin. Among the shared key aromas are beta-damascenone (apple, rose) and phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
What each one brings
raisin
The herbal side. Herbal notes make up 6% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 0% for sugar. It carries 96 molecules sugar doesn't have.
sugar
The tartness. Sour notes make up 24% of its labelled aroma molecules, against 18% for raisin. It carries 32 molecules raisin doesn't have.
Add a third ingredient
- Cinnamon: the best fit for both, top 1% of pairs with raisin, top 10% with sugar.
- Flour: top 1% of pairs with raisin, top 15% with sugar.
- Almond: top 2% of pairs with raisin, top 18% with sugar.
- Vanilla: top 12% of pairs with raisin, top 8% with sugar.
Ranked by the average of its two pairing scores. Only foods used in at least 100 recipes are suggested.
Recipes with raisin and sugar
Mostly desserts: 20 of the 26 recipes with a course label are desserts.
Can you swap one for the other?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: raisin has 96 molecules sugar doesn't, and sugar has 32 that raisin 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 33 shared molecules
See every shared molecule grouped by chemical class, with key aromas marked, plus the 96 only in raisin and the 32 only in sugar.
Raisin and sugar questions
Do raisin and sugar go together?
A good pairing. Cooks put them together in 12,481 recipes, and they share 33 flavor molecules: the top 13% of all ingredient pairs.
Why do raisin and sugar taste good together?
More than half of sugar's flavor molecules (33 of 65) also occur in raisin. Among the shared key aromas are beta-damascenone (apple, rose) and phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
What goes with raisin and sugar?
Cinnamon is the best third ingredient: top 1% of pairs with raisin and top 10% with sugar. Flour and almond also fit both.
What can you make with raisin and sugar?
Mostly desserts: 20 of the 26 recipes with a course label are desserts. Common dishes include Raisin Bran Muffins, Raisin Rolled Strudel, 6-Week Muffins, Belizean Carrot Cake.
Can I use sugar instead of raisin?
Not really. Each has a lot the other lacks: raisin has 96 molecules sugar doesn't, and sugar has 32 that raisin 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: Raisin vs Sugar. https://compkitchen.com/compare/raisin-vs-sugar. Accessed 2026-11-04.
@misc{compkitchen_compare_compound_similarity_analysis_raisin_vs_sugar_2026,
title = {Compound similarity analysis: Raisin vs Sugar},
author = {{Compound Kitchen}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://compkitchen.com/compare/raisin-vs-sugar},
note = {Accessed: 2026-11-04}
}
Methodology DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19719459 · CC BY 4.0 · Citations are a request, not a requirement.