The Perfect Charcuterie Board

Recipe Ingredients

All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.

Note: these are suggested ingredients and you should feel free to tweak them however you see fit!

• Cured meat. Use a selection of 3-4 different cured meats for your charcuterie board. In the board pictured, I used a hard soppressata, bresaola, salami, and prosciutto. Use any variety you’d like and that works for you and your budget. If your budget permits you to splurge for Jamon Iberico or Prosciutto di Parma, go for it. If not, domestic cured meats are great too, trust me!
• Cheese. Select 4 or more cheeses of varying texture and flavor. I used a hard Parmigiano Reggiano, a Vermont sharp cheddar, a blue cheese, and a soft brie, but use any combination you’d like. Other favorites of mine include Merlot BellaVitano Merlot or Espresso BellaVitano, cave-aged gruyere, Beemster-aged gouda, and drunken goat cheese. If you know your guests’ tastes, you can even tailor the cheese selection to include their favorites.
• Bread and crackers. I love to include a baguette with a charcuterie board. It often serves as my centerpiece and is versatile. Breadsticks, crackers of different shapes and sizes, and taralli are all great options. Choose anywhere from 3-4 different types.
• Nuts and chocolate. I love the combo of sweet and salty, so I opted for pistachios (salty), and candied pecans (sweet). I also love to add dark chocolate squares to a charcuterie board. Use any chocolate you like!
• Condiments and jams. Honey and fig jam complement cheeses incredibly well. I especially love honey with blue cheese and fig jam with brie. Outstanding! Other great jam options include apricot jam or pear jam. I also always include cornichons and olives (any combination of olives works!).
• Fruit. If you can find grapes in varying colors and sizes, I recommend getting a few. I used green and black grapes here and love the pop of color they add. I also include slices of pear and assorted berries.
• Garnish. Herbs such as rosemary, thyme, tarragon, or culinary lavender would be excellent charcuterie board garnishes. I also like to add a few nuts in their shell or oranges with leaves (as seen in my antipasto platter recipe).

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to make it

You do not need to be a food stylist to create an incredible charcuterie board. Outlined below are the steps you can take to build a beautiful board that your guests will love to graze on.

• Select your board. The board you use can be simple and as large or small as you’d like it to be! For a smaller group, feel free to use a small cutting board, or for a very large group you may wish you use a large butcher block type of board. The one I used here is 16″ by 24″. I’ve found great deals on beautiful wood boards at Home Goods/Home Sense.
• Gather your ingredients. Use the above list (or the list in the recipe card) as a guide, but feel free to adjust it to fit your taste, your guests’ palates, and your budget. I’ve found the following ratio works great: 4 types of cheese, 4 types of meat, 3 types of bread/crackers, 1 type of chocolate, 2-3 different nuts, 1 jam, 1 honey, and 1-2 types of olives. Cornichons are a non-negotiable for me and I always have them on a charcuterie board! 1-3 different colors and types of grapes, 1 pear (or apple), and assorted berries.
• Pick a centerpiece. As mentioned above, if I’m using a baguette, I will let that serve as my centerpiece. Cut a few slices and place the remaining loaf on the board. You can also brush a few slices of the baguette and lightly toast, if desired.
• Place small bowls. Fill a few different small bowls with olives, honey, cornichons, and jam and stagger around the board. You can also place the nuts in small bowls and place those as well. These can all be off the board or on the board depending on the size of your board.
• Slice and place the cheese. If using hard cheeses, consider slicing at least half and placing the slices with the remaining block on the board. If using a soft cheese like a blue cheese, place the entire wedge on the board. If using a brie cheese, place it near complementary items such as the jam or honey.
• Place the meat. Fold or roll the salami and bresaola, and shape the prosciutto into nests or flowers. If using a hard salami or soppressata, cut a few slices and place all of it onto the board.
• Fill in the gaps with the remaining ingredients. If using grapes, consider cutting the vines into individual servings and scattering about. The crackers can be placed in various ways (ie. towers, on their sides, fanned out, etc).
• Add utensils. Place any necessary utensils, such as small spoons, forks, spreaders, cheese knives, nutcrackers, honey dippers, etc.
• Garnish. While this is optional, consider placing some fresh green herbs as a garnish along with nuts in their shells.
• Serve! I recommend having the charcuterie board assembled before your guests arrive. If you assemble the board much earlier, you can cover in plastic and place in the fridge. Remove from the fridge 30-45 minutes before your guests arrive. Serve alongside pre-dinner cocktails such as a Lillet Spritz, Aperol Spritz, or Lavender French 75.

More great appetizers

Here are a few of our favorite simple and delicious appetizers.

• Cannellini bean dip – the easiest appetizer ready in just a few minutes!
• Zucchini Bruschetta – with whipped lemon ricotta.
• Shrimp cocktail – with easy homemade cocktail sauce.