I am shocked just as you are. How can such an iconic food of the South actually be from the North? Despite the fact that pimento cheese was invented in New York state during the 1870s, the pimento cheese that we know of today is the Southern evolution of that northern spread. 

During the start of industrial food manufacturing and mass marketing, farmers in New York were making an unripened cheese like the French Neufchatel – cream cheese. In 1887 imported sweet red peppers from Spain, the pimento, became popular in America and was promoted to be enjoyed stuffed with cream cheese and baked, according to author Anne Brynn. These two popular products became favorites of high school curriculum Domestic Science, better known as “home economics.” Cream cheese and pimentos were regularly used in salads, hors d’oeuvres, and casserole recipes. 

In a 1908 Good Housekeeping article, a sandwich filled with cream cheese, mustard, chives, and pimentos was introduced. This recipe was later adapted by Eva Green Fuller’s Up-to-Date Sandwich Book that recommended grinding pimentos into cream cheese seasoned with salt and pepper and spread thin between two pieces of white bread. Variations of Fuller’s recipe began popping up in magazines and gained popularity as a favorite American sandwich. 

It didn’t take long for manufacturers to make things easier for consumers and start jarring the pimento cheese spread for mass consumption. In 1910, the spread gained popularity and was advertised “pimento cheese – something new.” A year later, importing the Spanish pepper became too expensive. Farmers associated with The Georgia Experiment Station outside of Griffin, Georgia, began farming domestic pimentos according to Lisa Lakey of Porter Briggs. By the 1920s, the pimento industry was thriving outside of Griffin and placed Georgia on the map as a top producer of the pepper with about 10 million cans of pimentos per year. 

After World War II and into most of the 20th century, pimento cheese lost popularity. It remained a household favorite for families who remembered it, but mass consumption was no longer a thing. It makes sense with Georgia producing pimentos that the once-popular spread stayed relevant in Southern homes. During the Great Depression, cream cheese was too expensive, so Southern homes started making their interpretation of the popular spread. Homemade mayonnaise, grated cheese, and pimentos with salt and pepper became a cheaper version of the spread. 

Fast-forward to the 21st century, when chefs, recipe developers, and culinary writers started reintroducing the household spread they remembered their mothers, grandmothers, and aunts making for them as kids. The once-popular new cheese spread-turned-humble household commodity became a fancy lowbrow condiment that started the rebirth of Southern cuisine. Now you see pimento cheese used in deviled crab dips, smothered in omelets, layered in fried green tomato sandwiches, and even accompanying oysters and other raw bar items. The South’s. –Justin Burke-Samson 

Pimento Cheese 

Ingredients
1 pound sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup Duke’s mayonnaise
1 7-ounce jar pimentos, drained and minced
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
In a medium bowl mix together cheese, mayonnaise, pimentos, hot sauce, and salt and pepper. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

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