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APPETIZERS

Olive Tapenade for Pimento Cheese

Two olives with opposite jobs -- buttery Castelvetrano, briny Greek -- chopped by hand with lemon, red onion, and cilantro, then spooned over a block of pimento cheese. A knife, a board, and no cooked anything.

See also Dill Pickle & Horseradish Yogurt Dip

OriginMediterranean-Southern
Active15 min
Total35 min
EquipmentChef's knife and cutting board
Yield
1cup
Tops an 8 oz tub with a little left over
Chop
10min
By hand -- a processor makes paste
Macerate
20min
Onion in lemon juice, before the oil goes in
Keeps
1week
Tapenade alone, covered in oil in the fridge
1 · CHOP 2 · MACERATE 3 · DRESS 4 · TOP
1 cup ≈ 237 mL pitted Castelvetrano olives Chop coarse -- pieces about the size of a corn kernel.1
1/2 cup ≈ 118 mL pitted Greek colada olives Chop finer than the Castelvetranos, nearly to a rubble.2
2 tbsp ≈ 30 mL red onion, minced fine Mince, then drop straight into the lemon juice in the mixing bowl.3
1 tbsp ≈ 15 mL fresh lemon juice, plus the zest of half the lemon Juice over the onion and leave 20 min.4
3 tbsp ≈ 44 mL cilantro leaves, chopped Fold in at the very end so it stays green.5
2 tsp ≈ 10 mL whole grain mustard Stir into the softened onion first, so it disperses before any oil coats it.
3 tbsp ≈ 44 mL olive oil Pour in and stir.6
to taste coarse black pepper Grind in and taste.7
8 oz ≈ 227 g pimento cheese Spread in a shallow dish, about an inch deep8
  1. pitted Castelvetrano olives · CHOP These stay chunky and buttery; they are the body of the spoonful.
  2. pitted Greek colada olives · CHOP Half the quantity and twice the salt, so it has to distribute.
  3. red onion, minced fine · MACERATE Do not skip ahead to the oil.
  4. fresh lemon juice, plus the zest of half the lemon · MACERATE Zest the half lemon now and hold it for the dressing stage.
  5. cilantro leaves, chopped · DRESS Chop it no more than a minute before it goes in.
  6. olive oil · DRESS Then add both chopped olives and the reserved zest and fold until everything is glossy.
  7. coarse black pepper · DRESS No salt at any point -- the olives and mustard have brought all of it.
  8. pimento cheese · TOP And spoon the tapenade over the middle so a rim of orange still shows. Serve with a spreading knife.
Protein
Produce
Dairy & Egg
Pantry & Grain
Spice & Seasoning
Liquid & Fat

Notes

Chop by hand, not in a processor. A processor emulsifies the olive oil out of the olives and turns the whole thing into the brown paste sold in jars. The point of this version is that you can still tell the two olives apart on the spoon.
Twenty minutes of lemon juice on the onion is not optional. Raw red onion in a cold dish stays harsh for hours. The acid does chemically what heat would do in a pan -- it is the only cooking step available here.
Add no salt. Between two brines, mustard, and the pimento cheese underneath, the finished bite is already at the edge. Season the tapenade to taste on a cracker with the cheese, never alone.
Store the two components apart. The tapenade keeps a week under a film of oil; the moment it sits on the pimento cheese it starts weeping brine into it. Top only what you are putting out.
Board placement. This is the salt anchor. Set it between Whipped Apple Butter & Walnut Dip and Dill Pickle & Horseradish Yogurt Dip so the sweet and the tangy each have something to argue with.
Original Developed in this project, September 6, 2026, from a standing pantry inventory. The pairing is the original idea here -- tapenade over pimento cheese rather than beside it -- built to cut the mayonnaise in a store-bought tub.