When you hear pimento cheese, I’m sure the South comes to your mind, and for good reason- it’s a Southern staple. But a little known fact is that pimento cheese was invented north of the Mason-Dixon Line, specifically in my home state of New York.
According to Serious Eats, back in the 1870s, New York farmers started making a soft, unripened cheese that eventually evolved into cream cheese. Around the same time, Spain started sending canned red peppers or “pimiento” over to the United States. The two ingredients were eventually brought together in 1908, in a Good Housekeeping recipe that called for cream cheese, mustard, chives, and minced pimentos. The combination of cream cheese and pimento was such a hit, it started to be mass produced and sold in many regions across the Country.
After World War II, the popularity of pimento cheese began to wane, and it started to disappear from grocery store shelves. But somewhere along the line, Southern cooks took what originated as an industrial food product and started creating their own recipes for making it from scratch turning it into something truly delicious that is associated very closely with the South.
Today most pimento cheeses are made with cheese, mayonnaise and pimentos, but there are so many ways to make this Southern staple. Some of the variations are minor, some major. Either way, there aren’t many pimento cheese recipes that I don’t like, but I am preferential to Ina Garten’s variation, which includes one of the original ingredients, cream cheese, and has a little kick thanks to the addition of pickled jalapeños and Sriracha. This is her version from Barefoot Contessa. I prefer it to the one in her newest cookbook, Modern Comfort.
Ingredients:
10 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup of mayonnaise
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 cup picked jalapeños, chopped
6 ounces pimento pepper, chopped
5 cups hand-grated cheddar cheese
1 to 2 tablespoons Sriracha
Instructions:
Combine the cream cheese, mayonnaise, garlic powder, onion powder and celery seed. Mix in the pickled jalapenos, pimento peppers and grated Cheddar. Add the Sriracha and combine. Taste and add more mayonnaise and Sriracha, if necessary. Chill for at least a couple of hours before serving.
Note: this recipe makes a quart of pimento cheese. It will last in the fridge for up to week.
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