How To Make A Charcuterie Board

Learn how to make a charcuterie board for your guests to enjoy! It’s such a simple, but highly impressive appetizer you can easily assemble for a party and get together with friends.

Building the perfect cheese charcuterie board is I realize a highly subjective concept. What may be perfect for you may not be for me, and vice versa. I mean, I know persimmons are one of those weird fruits people sometimes bristle at ha!

But I want you to consider that there are a few key principles that involve putting together a cheese & meat masterpiece, many of which I covered in our last post, where I showed you how to make a spooky themed board for Halloween.

Let’s review below, shall, we, and then we’ll get started on making our own perfectly beautiful and delectable cheese charcuterie board.

What Is A Charcuterie Board?

Let’s start with what are we even talking about? Well charcuterie, pronounced [shar-koo-tuh-ree] is basically a meat and cheese board.

Sorry vegans, but you’ve first gotta have cured meats, because that’s what charcuterie literally means! Of course you can skip the meat, but then you can’t call it charcuterie haha! I mean, I’m sure there’s no charcuterie board police out there, but if there were, you’d be arrested for calling a meatless board charcuterie! 😉

What Do you put on a charcuterie board?

Meats: So as mentioned above yes to be a true charcuterie board you need a selection of cured and smoked meats.

Any type of salami is always a good idea, as is a thin sliced prosciutto, which can be pricey so to save a tiny bit, I usually buy it from the deli counter instead of pre-packaged. It’s a splurge item, so even for a big party board I typically won’t put more than ¼ lb of prosciutto out, and let the guests fight over the paper thin slivers like wolves. 😉 A peppery thick cut hard salami is also fun because it offers up a heartier texture than the other thin sliced meats.

When placing them on the board, I start by putting out several slices of each, but then add in more at the end to fill in holes, so make sure you only put out about ⅔ of each type of meat, and set aside the remaining pieces to fill in gaps as needed.

Cheeses: Second, you’ve got to have a mix of 2-3 types of cheeses, typically a hard and soft, like brie and manchego, plus a third funsies pick, like goat cheese or Humboldt Fog.

Nuts, Crackers, And Other Crunchy Options: Third, have a mix of crunchy options. Of course crackers, but also consider adding in a type of nut (Marcona almonds are my faveeee). This added texture will jazz the textures up a bit so you don’t feel like you’re just eating soft cheeses and deli meats like a geriatric.

Something Fresh!: Lastly, I always love to add in something fresh! Berries, grapes, apples, maybe even a raw veggie! The fresh fare helps to cleanse the palate and I personally feel like it eases my tummy a bit since the cheese and cured meats can get heavy after noshing down half the board 😉

So How Do You Make A Charcuterie Board?

First here is a simple breakdown of how I assemble a charcuterie board with zero fuss:

1. Choose Your Serving Platters And Utensils
2. Assemble Your Cheeses
3. Then Your Meats
4. Fill In With Olives, Nuts, And Fruit
5. Last The Crackers (To Keep Them Crisp!)
6. Finishing Touches – A few veggies maybe? Or a little more meat in places

I like to start with my cheeses first, then add in the cured meats, and then layer in all the other fun accouterments, from fruits, nuts, olives and sweet treats. I always put crackers out just before serving to prevent them from getting stale and/or soggy, especially if they’re sitting very close to a cheese or fruit.

Make sure you set out a few small plates for guests to serve and go, because just like with my loaded hummus dip, no one likes a food hoverer, standing over the food and not letting anyone else get to it!

Tips For Building A Charcuterie Board

• Choose A Large Enough Board – You want to be able to have enough room for all your selections. So choose your board first and choose wisely.
• Place Your Cheeses And Meats First. These will be the biggest items, so it’s important to put these first before you get carried away withe smaller items.
• Place Out Crackers Last (And Right Before Serving!) – These can go stale quickly so I always wait to put these out last until guests are about to arrive.
• Pick A Balance Of Flavors. I like to stick with something salty, something sweet, something spicy, and something fresh.
• Have Small Plates Handy. This makes it so your charcuterie board is accessible and people don’t need to stand right there but can make a small plate with their favorites and move along.

More Appetizers To Enjoy

• Epic Crudite Platter With Dip
• Loaded Hummus Dip Recipe

Pair With Some Cocktails To Sip

Nothing goes better with a charcuterie board, then a nice cocktail to wash it all down! Here are a few to shake up:

• Gin Grapefruit Cocktail
• Cucumber Jalapeno Margarita
• Apple Cider Moscow Mules

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I know holidays can be hard, with the stress and possibly strained relationships. Also, if you’ve recently suffered a loss and this is the first holiday without your loved one, you may not feel much like celebrating. Whether you decide to go through the motions or opt out completely, I pray you find some peace and joy this week and the weeks leading up to all the big celebrations. I am so so thankful you are here, in this world and here, reading this blog. Let me know how your day goes, and of course, if you decide to make this for yourself or for guests.

Fall Charcuterie Board

The perfect cheese charcuterie board to serve at your next Fall gathering or Thanksgiving feast! A beautiful mix of cheeses, meats and seasonally vibrant fruits!

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Prep Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: 6 people

Author:Andrea

Ingredients

• ▢ Cured and Smoked Meats
• ▢ Assorted Cheeses
• ▢ Assorted Crackers
• ▢ Assorted Olives and Nuts
• ▢ Assorted fruits
• ▢ Assorted veggies
• ▢ Sweet nibbles

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Instructions

• Choose Your Serving Platters And Utensils
• Assemble Your Cheeses
• Then Your Meats
• Fill In With Olives, Nuts, And Fruit
• Last The Crackers (To Keep Them Crisp!)
• Finishing Touches - fill in little holes with more meats, veggies or sweet treats

Video

Notes

Choose a hard, soft and mild spreadable cheese to get a nice assortment that will satisfy many tastes.

Avoid very ripe cheeses if you're serving beyond your personal preferences. Some guest may not love smelly cheeses 🙂

Keep extras close by so you can easily and quickly fill in as needed.

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