After having consumed approximately half of Vermont’s supply of Cheddar cheese in the name of research, I’ve discovered that this pimento cheese recipe from Rebecca Lang is the best dang pimento cheese I’ve ever had. I also found that doing yourself a favor and making it a day ahead of time only improves the taste. The onion mellows, the pimento perks up, the color blends, and everything becomes, well, ambrosial. And it’s one less thing for you to do the day of when guests are on their way. And you can do waaaaay more than just slather the pimento cheese on crackers. You can also set it out as part of a crudités platter, stuff it in sandwiches (whether petite tea party bites or gooey grilled cheese sandwiches), or perhaps even scoop it straight from the container at 2:00 a.m. as you lean against the sink. Not that I know anything about that.–David Leite
Mellow Yellow Cheddar Cheese Note
When a Southerner makes pimento cheese, he or she is usually pretty particular about the type of cheese. David isn’t a Southerner but he is plenty particular about his recipes. He instructed us to share with you that he uses white Cheddar, not orange. He prefers the flavor of white. Besides, you still get a lovely orange tint from the pimentos. We haven’t run this by the author of the recipe, Rebecca Lang, although we’re curious to hear what she thinks. Let’s see if she notices…
Pimento Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 pound sharp white Cheddar cheese, (or if you’re a true Southerner, by all means, stick with orange Cheddar)
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- One (4-ounce) jar pimentos, drained well
- 2 tablespoons grated Vidalia or other sweet onion
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Crackers, toast points, crudités, or anything else you can think to serve with it
Instructions
- Grate the cheese in a food processor or on the large holes of a box grater. (Just between us, a food processor is the way to go. Five seconds max. Although you can do it by hand just for old-time's sake to get that Southern nostalgia mood going.)
- In a bowl or your food processor, mix the grated cheese, mayonnaise, pimentos, grated onion, and a few good grinds pepper until blended. Resist the urge to dig in immediately. Instead, cover it and stash it in the fridge for at least a couple hours and, preferably, 24 hours. (Trust us, the pimento cheese is unspeakably better after it rests. You can refrigerate it for up to 4 days, provided you can resist it that long.)
- To serve, decant the pimento cheese into your loveliest serving dish. Serve with crackers, toast points, crudités, or anything you fancy.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This pimento cheese is very addictive! It’s easy to prepare but the 2-hour to overnight waiting period is definitely difficult to endure. Your reward, though, is a pleasingly rich cheese dip that really shows itself off, especially at room temperature.
Using a food processor will save some time but I do recommend grating the cheese first. After that, put everything into the processor and pulse a few times until you get texture and orange color you’re after. I found some of the pimento from the jar were rather large, so if doing this all by hand, be sure to finely chop the pimento so they mix adequately with the cheese, mayo, and onion.
Why, David O’Hara, how ever did you live so long without “puh-MIN-uh” cheese?! Your recipe is sound, but I’d throw in another 1/4 cup of mayo. Maybe I’ll send you my recipe. Oh, and feel free to keep it in the fridge up to a week — can’t kill this stuff!
Oh, fiddle-dee-dee, Jean. Why don’t you just send me your recipe, and I’ll see if I can stiff another pound down The One’s gullet.
Ain’t no Southerner ever turn his nose up at my pimento cheese which I make with my own roasted red peppers. I douse them with olive oil and sliced garlic and let rest for a day or so. Then chop, along with diced jalapenos and add to cheese with, of course, Duke’s mayo. I was born and bred in Brooklyn, but Duke’s has it all over Hellman’s. (PS-I love boiled peanuts, too.)
Icechip, where do you buy Duke’s in Brooklyn?
I live in NC now, sorry for the confusion.
Ah. No problem.
David, I’m late to this party, but I can answer the Duke’s question for you if no one else has. The company will ship. Four jars to a case and price includes shipping. I grew up with Duke’s, and nothing else comes close except homemade. I’ve ordered it direct from the company for years. (That, and Luzianne tea, but I can get that out here in the west now.)
And I agree with whoever said that is quite a lot of mayo in the recipe. Half a cup would be plenty unless you want to go swimming in it…which actually sounds like a delicious idea. 😉
Thanks, Renee. I did order a jar of it. The One and are split. I liked Hellmann’s more. He liked Duke’s, which is weird because he’s been a huge Hellmann’s fans for decades. So now we switch hit when it comes to mayo.
And I didn’t find the cheese was swimming in it. But then again, I never was a good swimmer!
Would I lose my dollar if I were to bet that The One has the lesser sweet tooth of the two of you?
My Other Half, who would choose pasta over dessert any day of the week, has never had anything good to say about any mayo, even homemade, but even he will accept Dukes in things like tuna or potato salad — although it took a Herculean effort on my part to even get him to taste it.
If I can’t get my hands on Dukes, I will use Hellmans (Best out here), but I find I have to cut the sweet factor elsewhere in the dish.
Ah, the power of suggestion. After reading all these comments, I had to make some last night. Pahmentah cheese on celery sticks, now there is the flavor of nostalgia.
Actually, it’s pretty much a tie, Renee. We both love sweets, but I can go for savory more than he.
mfasy, thank you kindly, ma’am. We were supposed to have blacked-eyed peas this morning (a recipe from my cookbook), but a certain someone who shall remain nameless (The One) forgot to soak them last night. Arrrrrgh! Happy New Year to you, too!