Southern Pimento Cheese without Cream Cheese
This Southern Pimento Cheese (without cream cheese) recipe is quick and easy to make and great as a sandwich, spread or a dip for crackers!
This classic recipe is inspired by Southern Living™ and has been around forever! Why?
It’s based on simple ingredients: sharp cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, pimentos and a few seasonings. Some recipes for this pimento sandwich spread include cream cheese, but this recipe is for pimento cheese without cream cheese.
It’s Absolutely The Best. The cayenne pepper gives this Southern favorite just a smidgen of heat and it’s great with saltine crackers, celery or Fritos corn chips!
Why this recipe works
In the South, homemade pimento cheese sandwiches are a summer staple! You can make this and slap it on plain white bread or make a grilled cheese sandwich or a pimento cheese spread.
However you serve it, you’ll want to make a big batch because it goes fast! This recipe is an old fashioned pimento cheese recipe without cream cheese.
- Quick and Easy – takes 5-minutes to shred sharp cheddar cheese and mix it up with the mayonnaise, pimentos and other seasonings.
- Versatile – serve as a dip with a veggie plate, on a sandwich or burger or as a chip and dip!
- Flavorful-make it as tangy or spicy as you like!
Ingredients
This Southern pimento cheese sandwich recipe stays true to what you’d most likely find at your local diner or at your best friend’s grandmother’s house.
Southern Pimento Cheese consists of simple ingredients:
- Block of sharp cheddar cheese
- Mayonnaise
- Diced and drained pimentos
- Pinch of ground cayenne pepper
- A little sweet yellow onion
- Dash of Worcestershire sauce.
- Note, this pimento cheese recipe has no cream cheese.
- Pimentos are usually on the pickle aisle at the grocery store – did you know pimento peppers are just roasted red peppers?
How to make homemade pimento cheese
For quick and easy pimento cheese, use a food processor and shred the sharp cheddar cheese, then transfer it to a large mixing bowl, add in the drained, diced pimentos, mayonnaise, grated sweet onion (you can use a half teaspoon onion powder), a dash of Worcestershire sauce and a little cayenne pepper.
Use a spatula and combine the ingredients; taste for salt; add salt, freshly ground black pepper or a little garlic powder if you like. combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir it up!
There’s little prep time and no waiting for any cream cheese to get soft…sometimes simple is best!
Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip?
Southern cooks are divided on the issue of which works best in an authentic Southern pimento cheese. This is definitely one conversation you do not want to bring up in Southern Cooking groups… the result can get ugly… think Civil War. Seriously.
Some swear by Duke’s Mayonnaise while others prefer insist Hellman’s Mayonnaise is best. Then there’s another whole group who swear by Miracle Whip brand mayonnaise “dressing” instead of mayonnaise.
It’s a never ending battle and in the end, it’s really up to you. I’ve had pimento cheese made with Miracle Whip and mayonnaise and I prefer mayonnaise.
FAQ
Unfortunately, this does not freeze well due to the eggs in the mayonnaise.
If you use a mayonnaise “dressing” (aka “Miracle Whip”), it might hold up better in the freezer, but I’ve never had enough leftover to worry about freezing it….folks eat it up pretty quickly.
Since cheese is the star of this Southern recipe, you’ll want to use a high-quality, block of sharp cheddar, which is the traditional cheese for really good Southern pimento cheese. Pre-shredded cheeses do not have the moisture that block cheeses have, and the result looks and tastes a bit different.
The infamous Master’s pimento cheese sandwich recipe incorporates cream cheese into the mix, but as a native Texan, we never added that-we just make pimento cheese without cream cheese.
Homemade pimento cheese holds up well for about a week, provided it’s in an airtight container.
Believe it or not, it originated in through New York via Philadelphia (Philadelphia Cream Cheese…) The earliest pimento cheese recipes were based on cream cheese, or Neufchatel cheese, and not cheddar cheese. As the recipe moved South, folks started to substitute the few ounces cream cheese with sharp cheddar cheese…I guess Philadelphia cream cheese hadn’t gotten to the Deep South by then so folks started making pimento cheese with plain old cheddar. The recipe stuck and that’s how this Southern pimento cheese recipe came to be.
Pimento Cheese Variations
There are many variations of Southern Pimento Cheese that are equally delicious! Use a combination of cheeses or a cheese blend –
Smoked Gouda pimento cheese – replace cheddar with gouda
Pepper Jack pimento cheese sandwich – shredded spicy pepper jack cheese makes a jalapeno pimento cheese recipe. Another version I’ve seen is with White Cheddar.
Of course, you can always add garlic or onion powder to your Southern pimento cheese for additional spice or chop black or green olives, jalapenos or bell pepper for added texture!
If it’s too hot to cook and you need a quick sandwich, this Southern pimento cheese without cream cheese is quick and easy to make!
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♥ If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and rating! I love to hear from you!
Southern Pimento Cheese without Cream Cheese
Ingredients
- 16 ounces sharp cheddar grated
- 1½ cups mayonnaise
- 8 ounces chopped pimento drained
- 1 teaspoon grated sweet onion
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder optional
- salt and pepper ,to taste
Instructions
- Use a hand grater or food processor and grate the cheese; pour into a large mixing bowl16 ounces sharp cheddar
- Use the small side of a cheese grater and grate a little fresh sweet yellow onion; add this to the bowl of cheese1 teaspoon grated sweet onion
- Add drained pimentos, mayonnaise, cayenne pepper and Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder (optional); combine well; taste for salt and pepper1½ cups mayonnaise, 8 ounces chopped pimento, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, salt and pepper
- Serve as a sandwich, dip or spread
Notes
- This recipe tastes best if you use a block of sharp cheddar and grate it versus pre-shredded cheddar
- If you want it creamier, add more mayonnaise
Yum! I love pimento cheese. Low carb and keto friendly. It’s awesome. I’m on Team Mayonnaise. Just say no to Miracle Whip. hahahaha
I’m with you, Kim!! Thank you for sharing your thoughts!!
I just finished off a pimento cheese sandwich. Sooooo good! I make mine exactly like yours except I don’t add the cayenne pepper. I’ll have to try that next time!
The cayenne actually gives it a little kick! You can use black pepper, too!
This is delicious every time!