How to Make a Charcuterie Board

You name the ingredient, there’s a charcuterie board for it. Hosts everywhere have taken the trend—which typically includes cheeses, meats, crackers and other bites—and have made it their own, whether that’s by keeping things cozy with a sweet hot chocolate board, staying on top of the trends with a butter board, or assembling fruits and veggies in the shape of an evergreen for an adorable Christmas tree charcuterie board.

With endless themes to try out, like unique St. Patrick’s Day charcuterie boards or skeleton charcuterie boards, knowing how to make a charcuterie board is a skill that never goes out of style. Perfect this classic charcuterie board, and you’ll be ready to get creative with your own custom charcuterie board ideas.

What is charcuterie?

Charcuterie is the French word for cured, preserved and dried meats like salami, prosciutto and mortadella (though these are all Italian examples), which are sold in a shop that’s also called a charcuterie. A classic charcuterie board is a platter tailor-made for snacking, with a selection of cheeses, crackers, condiments and more alongside different meats.

Tools for Making a Charcuterie Board

• Serving board: A large board is the most essential item for building a charcuterie board. We prefer wood, since it’s a versatile kitchen material that doubles as a beautiful serving tray for pizza and other appetizers. You can’t go wrong with our Test Kitchen’s favorite cheese board, or with one of our other picks for the best charcuterie boards.
• Cheese knives: High-quality cheese knives are the bread and butter of charcuterie boards (aside from the actual bread and butter, of course). We love a four-piece set that’s perfect for slicing, spreading and serving a variety of cheeses.
• Small bowls: Add texture and dimension to the board with some small, pretty ceramic bowls. They’re perfect for dressing up the board while providing a home for olives, pickles and spreads.

What to Put on a Charcuterie Board

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

Picking out charcuterie board ingredients and recipes to feature might seem intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be! Follow these guidelines for how to make a charcuterie board your guests will eat up.

The best cheeses for a charcuterie board

When assembling any kind of charcuterie board, one of the most important things is variety in flavor, texture and color. More variety means more combinations of food to try, and more chances your guests will find something they love. Plus, you’ll get a prettier board overall! When designing this charcuterie board, Taste of Home food stylist Josh Rink picked:

• Herbed Boursin: A soft and spreadable cheese with a garlicky-herb flavor.
• Mimolette: A nutty cheese with a unique crystalline texture.
• Smoked Gouda: A smoky cheese with a chewy exterior.
• Havarti: A creamy and mild comforting cheese.
• Blue cheese: A crumbly, yet sharp and rich cheese.
• Pimento cheese: A spicy cheese like Southern pimento cheese spread is perfect for spreading on crackers.

If you want to get to know your cheeses better, joining a cheese of the month club is a great way to explore different cheeses and find a new favorite. It’ll be less intimidating to try new cheeses for your board when you do it all the time!

The best meats for a charcuterie board

Variety is just as important for the meat selection. Choose a few from the best charcuterie board meats.

• Prosciutto: A must for any charcuterie board. Its chewiness and saltiness pair well with most cheeses.
• Soppressata: Similar to salami, it’s normally served in rounds.
• Calabrese: It’s sliced thinner than the soppresata and has a good bite.
• Mortadella: A classier version of bologna that everyone will love.

The best crackers and condiments for a charcuterie board

A selection of different colors, shapes and flavors is ideal for the crackers, too. You never know what your guests will discover as their favorite combination.

• Herbed crackers: These Thyme-sea salt crackers serve as an herbaceous base for any cheese and meat pairing.
• Rye crackers: They add a different shade of brown and have a crunch unlike anything else on the board.
• Baguette slices: They provide a chewy contrast to crispy crackers. You can also bake them in the oven if you prefer a crunch.
• Long, thin crackers: Ones with squiggled edges provide visual interest. They also make a perfect vessel for cheese spreads.
• Stone ground mustard: Spread it on a cracker for a thin layer of spice.
• Honey: When drizzled on top, it adds a welcome sweetness to salty meats.
• Fig spread: It adds a sweet yet rich dimension to a variety of cheeses.

Fruits and vegetables for a charcuterie board

If you’re lacking color on your charcuterie board, vibrant fruits and vegetables are the answer. Stick with what’s in season for the freshest selection.

• Sweety drop peppers: They’re miniature and cute and also unexpectedly sweet.
• Red, green and purple grapes: Use all three for three different pops of color.
• Dried fruits: They offer a textural balance to fresh fruits. Dried apricots in particular pair well with several other items on the board.

Pickles and nuts for a charcuterie board

Pickles, pickled veggies, and nuts add even more crunch and texture to your charcuterie board.

• Olives: Set these marinated olives in a bowl on your board—they’re always a crowd-pleaser.
• Roasted nuts: This recipe for rosemary walnuts is a simple but flavor-packed upgrade from plain nuts.
• Gherkins: Sweet or sour gherkins or homemade pickles (or one of our favorite pickle brands) bring some brine to the party.
• Marcona almonds: These seeds belong on every charcuterie board! They’re oily, salty and absolutely perfect for pairing or eating individually.

How to Make a Charcuterie Board

Step 1: Place the cheeses

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

Pull the cheese out of the refrigerator about an hour ahead of time, because serving room temperature cheese (as opposed to cold cheese) allows the full flavors to shine through.

Then, dive right in and put the cheeses on the board. Crumble a corner of the blue cheese to get things going and set out the wheel of herbed Boursin and slices of the Mimolette, the Gouda and the Havarti. Don’t be afraid of empty space; you have plenty of other items that will fill up the board.

Editor’s Tip: Always pre-cut a few slices or crumble a corner of a wedge to let guests know how each cheese is supposed to be consumed.

Step 2: Add bowls and decorative greenery

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

Bowls are the bulkiest items on a charcuterie board, so make space for them before adding anything else. Scoop the pimento cheese spread, red peppers and marinated olives into small bowls and spread the bowls out on the board.

If you want to use decorative elements to elevate your charcuterie board, arrange them now so you won’t have to lift foods up later to tuck them in. Here, Josh put clusters of three or five lemon leaves in a few different spots on the board and let them hang off the edge a bit to ensure they’d still be visible once everything else was added. (A small cluster of decorative greenery will elevate mini individual charcuterie boards too!)

Make sure any greenery you use is food-safe—and, most importantly, that it hasn’t been sprayed with chemicals. You can ask for this type of greenery from florists or order it online. Along with lemon leaves, fig leaves or grape leaves work well.

Step 3: Pile on the meats

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

It’s time for the charcuterie portion of your charcuterie board! Josh suggests folding the slices of meat in different ways to add visual interest, texture and height.

Arrange slices of the Calabrese salami in an S-shaped line. Fold soppressata slices in halves and fan them out. Fold the prosciutto and mortadella into quarters and keep them apart—since they’re similar colors, you don’t want to mix them up by putting them right next to each other.

Step 4: Arrange the crackers and condiments

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

Distribute the crackers and condiments around the board, thinking about which cheeses and meats each pairs best with.

We put the thyme-sea salt crackers near the prosciutto and the herbed Boursin cheese, the squiggly crackers near the pimento cheese spread, the honey near the blue cheese, and the spicy mustard near the smoky Gouda. Keeping the good pairings together on your charcuterie board helps guide your guests.

Step 5: Fill in the gaps with fruit

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

Fill in some of the gaps on the board with dried apricots and bunches of red, green and purple grapes.

Step 6: Add the pickles and nuts

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

Fill in the very last open spaces of the board with rosemary walnuts, gherkin pickles and Marcona almonds. There should be just enough space. Add mini utensils to the board, remembering cheese knives and spoons for condiments. These mini jam jars can be a sweet addition to your board too!

Step 7: Serve and enjoy!

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

The charcuterie board is complete! Set it out alongside extra cheese knives and other utensils, appetizer plates and napkins.

Then, grab a plate and start noshing! Guests may feel shy about digging into your perfectly arranged charcuterie board. When you start eating, you’re letting them know the board is ready and are encouraging them to pile up their plates.

Tips for Making a Charcuterie Board

What items pair best together on this charcuterie board?

Josh says, “A little drizzle of honey over blue cheese is nothing short of magical.” So make sure to sample that combination! He also suggests spreading stone-ground mustard on a cracker and eating it with meat and cheese for a bite that tastes like a mini sandwich.

When it comes to drinks, wine is always welcome alongside a charcuterie board. Here are the best food and wine pairings.

Do you have to make homemade recipes for a charcuterie board?

Nope. We made marinated olives, Southern pimento cheese spread, and thyme-sea salt crackers for this board, but if you’re short on time and still want to build a beautifully arranged board, store-bought ingredients work just fine.

Can you make a charcuterie board ahead of time?

Mark Derse for Taste of Home

We recommend that you take the cheese out of the refrigerator about an hour ahead of time. But since you don’t want food sitting out uncovered for a long time, it’s best to assemble a charcuterie board as close to serving time as possible.

What else can you put on a charcuterie board?

Variety is key when selecting ingredients for a charcuterie board, and no food is really off limits—especially if you’re going for a themed charcuterie board like a festive turkey charcuterie board, a Thanksgiving charcuterie board or a Christmas cheese board. After all, there’s a board for every meals of the day: A breakfast charcuterie board, for example, would make a picture-perfect brunch. You can even make kids’ charcuterie boards or a fun French fry charcuterie board to make gatherings food-friendly for all ages.

Hummus, pretzels, Ritz crackers, Brie and even sweets like truffles or chocolate-covered cashews work on a traditional meat-and-cheese charcuterie board. If you want to add more fruit, Josh suggests picking up sliced donut peaches in late spring, figs in early summer or late fall, and pomegranates in winter. (And if you want to add more chocolate-covered items, you might be more in the mood for a sweet chocolate charcuterie board!)

Get even more inspiration by flipping through some of our favorite charcuterie board books. If you’re feeling especially handy, our friends at Family Handyman can even show you how to build a DIY charcuterie board from a hardwood board.

And finally, if you’d like to skip the prep, there’s no shame in seeking out charcuterie boxes and gift baskets you can order online.