Pimento Cheese

[Captain Morgan]

Is this a southern thing, or is it everywhere? I've been reading about people making theirs with chipotles and other red papers now. Have any traditional recipes or new twists you'd care to share?

[Nick Prochilo]

[quote=Susan Z]

Originally Posted by "Captain Morgan":rspbg97u

I've been reading about people making theirs with chipotles and other red papers now.

While red paper might LOOK the same, I bet it doesn't taste anywhere near as good as using peppers!

:biggrin:
[/quote:rspbg97u]

I've noticed that it has a very mild taste, almost bland!

[Captain Morgan]

bastards. A sick man makes a little typo, and you jump all over him.

[Captain Morgan]

Pimento Cheese




Assemble:

8 ounce block of extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, grated

8 ounce block of sharp Cheddar cheese, grated

4 ounce jar of pimiento, diced and drained

1 ½ to 1 ¾ cups of mayonnaise (Miracle Whip® works too)

Splash of Tabasco® (optional)

Grate cheeses.

Add pimiento and mayonnaise, using enough mayonnaise to make a spreadable consistency. Add a dash of Tabasco® if you like.

Spread on crackers, celery sticks, bread, etc.

Store in the refrigerator. This recipe makes approximately 4 cups.

[Captain Morgan]

No matter how you dress it ...


Pimento cheese is truly the 'Southern pate'

By Russ Lane

The Sun News


Its recipes are hotly debated and, yes, it might look a little funny, but pimento cheese is the classic example of a Southern food that can be dressed up and dressed down according to the whims of the cooks churning out batches of the cheese-pimento-mayonnaise mixture all summer long.

Golf devotees are at least familiar with the renown pimento cheese sandwiches served at Augusta National during The Masters, but Southerners lay true claim to what Gourmet magazine called the "Southern pate."

For those who grew up stealing spoonfuls of it out of the fridge, slathering some onto a slice of fresh bread or settling it onto a fresh celery stalk or a crisp cracker, pimento cheese carries with it an almost religious significance. It tends to happen when a food becomes almost synonymous with mid-summer night fridge raids, picnics and good family memories.

For the shared reverence we Southerners have for the stuff, God forbid you give someone what they feel is the wrong pimento cheese recipe.

While it's available every Southern supermarket, many opt to make it themselves: partly for ease, partly for the mixture's long shelf life, partly for the sense of pride of having the pimento cheese to eat at a social function.

But in most cases using anything less than Duke's mayonnaise is blasphemy. Jerry Springer-worthy fistfights can erupt from discussions of whether you use Velveeta, sharp cheddar or the bake or no-bake technique. And even then no one's exactly sure what the little jars of pimentos actually are.

But for all the fascination, reverence and derision this simple-but-classic mixture can cause, it's telling that the recipes readers submitted to The Sun News - as well as a few from cookbooks and those in the know - can run the culinary gamut.

Gwen Watson of Pawleys Island and Betty Hayes of Surfside Beach both make the purist's choice of pimento cheese using two very different techniques: Watson pairs sharp cheddar with evaporated milk, melts it down in a double boilers and chills it, adding mayonnaise as needed. Hayes chops up some Velveeta, adds the two other members of the trinity, and lets the mixture sit overnight to marry the flavors.

Lu Craig of Murrells Inlets takes a different route, adding lemon juice, onion, a kiss of Tabasco to her cheddar cheese. And Gourmet magazine uses two versions of extra-sharp cheddar and throws in some cayenne.

Pimento cheese is like the little black dress of Southern cuisine - depending on personal tastes and the circumstances under which it's served, you can dress it up and dress it down to suit any occasion.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Captain Morgan]

Posted on Wed, Aug. 10, 2005



Everyday Pimento Cheese




Reprinted with permission from "The Gourmet Cookbook" (Houghton Mifflin Company, $40).

½ pound extra-sharp Vermont White Cheddar

½ pound extra-sharp New York Orange Cheddar

1 7-ounce jar pimentos, drained and finely chopped

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2/3 cup mayonnaise (Duke's recommended)

Cayenne to taste

Salt to tasteFinely grate cheeses into a large bowl. With a fork, stir in pimentos, salt to taste, add black pepper and cayenne, then stir in mayonnaise, mashing mixture until fairly smooth. It should be flecked with small pieces of pimento.

Scrape into a small bowl or jar and refrigerate, covered, for at least 2 hours to allow flavors to develop.

Bring cheese to room temperature before serving. Pimento cheese can be refrigerated, tightly covered, for up to 4 days.Editor's note | Although the recipe suggest to salt, keep in mind most cheeses - Cheddar especially - tend to have plenty of salt on their own.

[Captain Morgan]

Shake up your standby recipes




Why not experiment? Here are some suggestions for tweaking your old standby pimento recipe:

Possible additions | Try any combination of the following to mix up your old pimento cheese recipe: garlic, cayenne, horseradish, lemon juice, onion, additional pepper types, chopped and toasted nuts (walnuts or pecans would work, just make sure they're cooled completely before adding them in the mixture).

Additional tweaks | Experiment with the amount of mayonnaise you put in. Also, if you shred your cheese, experiment with different shredding sizes.

Serving suggestions | Pimento cheese on white bread, on crackers, or nestled in a celery stalk give the pure Southern experience of pimento cheese. But also try adding a glob to your hot sandwiches (it works great with a hamburger). Substitute horseradish for some of the mayonnaise and add some Old Bay to make a different kind of shrimp cocktail sauce. Use the double boiler technique for your pimento cheese to serve as an interesting foundation for a soup or bisque.

[Larry Wolfe]

Originally Posted by Susan Z

O

Ok, ok, so---I've seen but never had pimento cheese, but have had lots of pepper jacks and stuff. So...what's yer question exactly? Do you actually make yer own cheese, like...who is it, Bryan?

WHAT??? YOU'VE EATEN DRIED CRABS BUT NEVER HAD PIMENTO CHEESE?? :faint:

[Nick Prochilo]

I've never had it, but I will be having it real soon! Thanks for the info Cappy!

[Larry D.]

Some years ago my brother-in-law was in the Marines, assigned to embassy duty in, I believe, Argentina. Anyway, he missed pimiento cheese, and tried to explain to the cook how it was made. She understood pretty well, up to the point where she asked how long it had to be cooked. Pimiento cheese was practically a staple food in our house when I was growing up.

[DaleP]

I love the stuff. On crackers, celery, and as a sandwich. Good eats. I use some red pepper in my recipe. Store bought just isnt the same as homemade. It is best the next day, sort of like chili.

[Finney]

I've got a good one Captain. Just got to find it in the drawer.

[Finney]

Had it here at work.
Posted it in the Sides and Such section.

[Captain Morgan]

ok, made 2 versions tonight. Both had shredded cheddar cheese.
first was mayo, cheese, pimentos, a little black pepper, and a small dollop of honey mustard. Very good.


The second added roasted jalaps, diced, and I thought it was VERY VERY good. The two tubs are in the fridge, final tasting comes tomorrow, after the conjugal responsibilities.