Tex Mex pimento cheese DSC4172

Tex-Mex pimento cheese

I’m heading home in a couple of days, and since I won’t arrive to the farm until late Thursday morning, I’ve been trying to figure out dishes I can contribute to the Thanksgiving feast that won’t take a lot of time and effort. As I was going through my list of recipes, I came across that old favorite—pimento cheese.

Truth be told, I hadn’t eaten any since my grandfather’s funeral back in 2008. A woman that goes to my grandparent’s church had read my earlier blog post where I remarked that pimento cheese makes for fine funeral food. And so she made my recipe and brought it to the farm.

It was a hit—so much of a hit that my uncle Richard and I got in a huge fight over who would get to eat the last couple of spoonfuls. (Now lest you think my family and I don’t get along—we were all a bit stressed because of the funeral and were behaving like five year olds. This is not to say, however, that it wasn’t indeed a fine batch of pimento cheese.) That day was over a year ago, and that’s just too long to go without eating pimento cheese. So I decided to whip up a batch.

Tex-Mex pimento cheese  | Homesick Texan

Pimento cheese is simple, really. At its most basic it’s just shredded cheddar cheese, some mayonnaise and chopped pimentos. But when I opened my refrigerator, I realized that I didn’t have any pimentos on hand. So I improvised.

I enjoy the tangy sweetness of the little red pimentos, but I also like the splash of color the peppers give to the spread. I had some Ro-Tel tomatoes on hand, so I threw them into my bowl. And to keep with the Tex-Mex theme, I decided to mix some lime juice, cilantro and cumin into my mayonnaise and tossed in a chopped Serrano chile as well.

There are many ways to eat pimento cheese, but my favorite way has always been simply as a dip. And the Tex-Mex profile of this spread definitely makes it perfect for tortilla chips. But it would also be terrific on a biscuit, folded into an omelet, or even scooped on top of a burger.

Tex-Mex pimento cheese  | Homesick Texan

What do you call pimento cheese when it doesn’t have pimentos? Pepper cheese? Tomato cheese? Pimento-not cheese? Tex-Mex cheese? I have no idea, but no matter what you call this pimento cheese, it’s still pretty darn good.

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5 from 1 vote

Tex-Mex pimento cheese

Servings 8
Author Lisa Fain

Ingredients

  • 1 pound cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1 can of Ro-Tel, drained
  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 Serrano chiles, seeded and finely diced
  • Salt, black pepper and cayenne to taste

Instructions

  • Mix all ingredients together and chill for a few hours.

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50 Comments

  1. Kelly Fisher says:

    Great recipe. I'm looking forward to trying your twist on an old favorite.

    I use a mix of medium cheddar, jalapeno jack cheese, pimientos, green onions and HELLMANN'S mayonnaise.

    Another trick I learned is NOT to use pre-grated cheese. It does not seem to have the moisture that freshly grated cheese has…while it takes a little longer, I think it's worth it.

    Happy Holidays.

  2. Better late than never…sorry it took so long-was gone for the holiday and have had limited internet time!

    Central Market’s Pimiento Cheese
    source: Central Market Cooks

    2 cups shredded sharp yellow Cheddar Cheese
    2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
    1 (4 oz) jar diced pimientos
    ½ t. sugar
    1 t. garlic powder
    1 T. minced fresh dill weed
    ¼ to 1/3 cup mayonnaise
    Salt and pepper to taste

    1. Mix Cheddar and mozzarella cheese in a medium bowl.
    2. Add the undrained pimientos, sugar, garlic powder and dill weed.
    3. Add enough mayonnaise to make the desired consistency and toss lightly to mix well.
    4. Season with salt and pepper.

  3. Carol Ann says:

    I made this for a cocktail party last night and it was delicious! Everyone loved it! Thank you!

  4. When I was a kid I always ate pimento cheese sandwiches. I was an extremely picky eater and that was the only kind of sandwich I would eat. I've never eaten it any other way! I'll have to try it as a dip some time.

  5. I was in Llano TX last weekend and stopped in at Millers, a great meat processing store. They have lots of meat and beer and their "Famous" pimento cheese. I had to have some with jalapenos, and it was really good. After it was gone, I decided that I had to make my own and, like you, found that I had no pimientos so I made this. It turned out really good! Thanks for the recipe, I will make it again and again.