Charcuterie boards are more popular than ever. Why? For us, when we entertain, or when we have friends for dinner, or when we throw a quick get-together, we love to use our charcuterie boards. Let’s talk about charcuterie boards, how to put one together and some of our favorite foods. First, let’s define charcuterie.
What is Charcuterie?
Charcuterie is the French term for prepared meat products like hams, sausages, terrines, and pâtés. Traditionally that was what was served. Since then, charcuterie has come to mean all sorts of cured meats, cheeses, fresh fruits, spreads, crackers, breads, and whatever else you want. We’ve even done all desserts and called it our charcuterie dessert board. Not what the French intended…but our guests enjoyed it.
Part of the fun of charcuterie boards for entertaining is that most of the time you really don’t need to make everything if you don’t want. Just take a trip to the store or your local cheese store and you’re ready to go.
What Makes Charcuterie Boards Popular?
Charcuterie boards make entertaining unique, fun, and tasty. Why?
- Guests can pick what they like from a variety of food
- The food is all on one board
- A charcuterie board can be made ahead of time
- You can refrigerate ingredients or the entire board
- Preparation does not have to be last minute
- You can use charcuterie boards as appetizers
- Charcuterie boards can be used to serve complete meals
- Dessert charcuterie boards are an option
How Would You Put Together a Charcuterie Board For Entertaining?
First, decide if you want appetizers only of if this is going to be your main course. If so, think about these things.
- Decide how many meats, cheeses, vegetables, fruits, spreads, and condiments
- Decide what types of crackers or breads you would like to use
- Lay some parchment paper on the board
- Decide where to place the food items
- Know what food needs to be served in bowls
- Figure out if cheese will be already sliced
- Decide what utensils you need
How Do You Place the Food?
- Olives, jams, nuts, pickles, and runny spreads go into small bowls
- Place those bowls around on the board
- Arrange meats in a pattern
- Add cheeses
- Lay some nuts or small fruits to compliment the cheeses
- Place crackers in little piles, scattered close to the spreads or cheeses
- Add sliced baguette pieces or crostini near the spreads
- Place a log of goat cheese with fig jam or jalapeno jelly slightly dripping down the side
As you can see, the possibilities are almost endless. When we use charcuterie boards for entertaining, we get creative with our food and our arrangements.
Want to know some of our favorite foods? Keep reading. Also, keep in mind we change it up from party to party or dinner to dinner.
What Are Some Food Choices?
Since we like a mix of foods, we like to add fruits with cheeses or salty meats with melons. These are some favorites.
- Meats
- Prosciutto
- Soppressata
- Hard salami
- Soft salami
- Fruits
- Ripe cantaloupe with prosciutto
- Honeydew melon
- Bright red strawberries
- Dark purple blackberries
- Slices of bright green kiwi
- Figs
- Dried apricots for orange color
- Cheeses
- Manchego
- Aged Gouda
- Goat cheese
- Parmesan Reggiano
- Brie
- Pates or Rillettes
- Duck liver pate
- Chicken rillettes
- Crackers or Crostini
- A variety of crackers
- Toasted baguette
- Tangy Vegetables
- Olives
- Cornichons
- Pickles
- Pickled vegetables
- Spreads
- Spicy pepper spread
- Sweeter fig jam
- Nuts
- Pistachios
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Candied walnuts
Add some fresh herbs, edible flowers, fig leaves, and bay leaves for garnish. The green provides a good backdrop and covers up some of the parchment paper.
What Else Do I Need For Entertaining?
Last, think of your serving utensils. Make sure there are enough small utensils to spread, slice, scoop, and serve all around the board. When entertaining on a charcuterie board, make it easy for your guests to get the food they want.
How Much Food Do I Need for a Charcuterie Board When Entertaining?
These are some general ideas we follow.
It’s best if you have an idea of how many people will be coming to your party. We always plan for a little more than our guest list. Then decide if your charcuterie board is for appetizers, main meal, desserts included or separate, and what you have available if you need extra food. We also take care to work around any allergies our guests may have.
If your board is for appetizers only, plan about four ounces per person. That equates to two meats and two cheeses…appetizer sizes.
On the other hand, if this is dinner you will want at least four different meats and cheeses per person. This comes to about eight ounces.
Other Things to Think About
- Place plates, napkins, and extra serving utensils places conveniently near the charcuterie board
- Make sure your guests can access the food easily
- Place the board in an area where a bottleneck will not occur
- Keep backup food easy for adding to the board
- Take time to make the charcuterie board attractive and enticing
- Cover the food with a kitchen towel once it is arranged like you want it to look
Final Thoughts When Creating a Charcuterie Board for Entertaining
Charcuterie boards are a great way to entertain. In addition, charcuterie boards make wonderful and unique gifts.
Stay tuned to learn about our personalized charcuterie boards…even better than plain ones.