DIY Charcuterie

My mother did these alot at times for parties, picnics and just for a early dinner. I loved them. I do them myself as our picnics too. When I lived in France they have dedicated cafes and everyone either had a jamon, butter baguette sandwhich or a tray of delecatable meats, cheeses, fruits and wine at these gorgeous old parks around the Seine River. This week I plan on doing one. We are able to get fresh local meat at a market that I love even buying there cured, dried and fresh cheeses and deli meats. I like to add a selection of fresh fruits and vegetables too. Yes, they’re more frequently included on a crudité platter, but I’m all about offering a wide variety of fresh produce, especially if the charcuterie board is dinner.

Cured Meats

I like to have about three or four different meat options on my board — usually one that’s a little spicy and some more kid-friendly options. That way there’s something for everyone!

Here are some meat suggestions:

• Prosciutto
• Salami
• Cured chorizo
• Capocollo
• Smoked turkey

I look for nitrate-free and pastured/grass-fed meats whenever possible.

Cheeses

There are so many amazing cheeses out there that it’s easy to go a little overboard. Keep in mind how many people you’ll be serving and try to stick with about five different cheese offerings. I try to pick a variety of textures and flavors and again, include a kid-friendly option.

• A smoky cheese like a smoked cheddar or gouda
• A creamy choice like brie or fresh marinated mozzarella
• Something hard like Parmesan
• An alternate milk cheese like goat cheese
• Something familiar like Colby jack

Pickles

Pickled foods add a nice tanginess to the richness of the meats and cheeses on a charcuterie board. Try some of these:

• Kalamata olives
• Blue cheese stuffed olives
• Pickled onions (recipe below)
• Pickled beets
• Baby dill pickles
• Capers

Ingredients

• 1 medium red onion
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp gebhardts chili powder(or garlic powder, for flavor, optional)
• ½ cup RAW apple cider vinegar

Instructions

• Thinly slice the onions, leaving them in rings.
• Carefully place the rings into a pint size mason jar and sprinkle with the salt and other seasonings.
• Pour the vinegar over the rings to fill the jar and put the lid on.
• Leave at room temperature for two hours so flavors can meld.
• Transfer to the refrigerator for up to two weeks

Dried Fruits

Dried fruits are a pretty straightforward category and also easy to find and select. Just choose whichever fruits appeal to you. Our favorites include dried apricots, mangoes, sun dried tomatoes, apple chips, and cherries.

Nuts

Optional, but they add a nice texture contrast to the numerous soft foods. Try pistachios, almonds, cashews, or Brazil nuts. Soak your raw nuts for better digestion.

Crackers

Crackers aren’t completely necessary, but they are handy for the softer cheeses like goat and brie. Since I don’t consume many grains I usually buy grain-free crackers or gluten free. You can buy any crackers or some flavored with herbs and spices.

Jams and Mustards

A grainy mustard is tasty with some of these meats, and fig or raspberry jam goes wonderfully with brie cheese.

Side note: fig jam is super easy to make. Just simmer dried in an equal amount of water, add a splash of lemon juice, and puree! 

Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

I like the fresh, clean taste that fruits and veggies add to this board. It is great to choose small, bite-size produce. For fruits I mostly use raspberries, blueberries, and grapes. For vegetables I use snap peas, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, thinly sliced radishes, and mini peppers.

Building a Charcuterie Board

Assembling a charcuterie board is actually a lot simpler than it looks. The first thing to do is to decide on what to use for a board. Any large platter or cutting board will work great. I also have a fabulous bamboo cutting board I love to use too. The boards are found on Amazon.

I group them by category and slice any hard cheeses, meats, and vegetables that need slicing.

If I have anything that needs to be served in a jar or bowl, such as jams, mustards, pickles, and olives, I put them in whatever I’ll be using as serving jars. They’re going to be the tallest components of the display, so I place them on the board first.

Next, I place the meats in piles here and there around and in between the jars. Keep in mind that you don’t need to put out the full amount of everything you have at once. Just put some of it out and refill the board later if need be.

After the meats, I do the same thing with the cheeses, followed by the nuts, dried fruits, and fresh fruits and veggies.

Add any serving utensils such as cheese knives (or butter knives) for the soft cheeses, small spoons for mustard or jam, little sets of tongs, or toothpicks.

And that’s it!  Once everything is ready, pour some wine and enjoy! 

Charcuterie Board Recipe

Ingredients

• 12 oz cured mests (chorizo, salami, prosciutto, capicola, turkey)
• 12 oz cheese (Parmesan, goat, fresh mozzarella, smoked cheddar or gouda, Colby jack)
• ¼ cup each pickles (choose 2 or 3: baby dills, kalamata olives, green olives, pickled onions, pickled beets)
• ¼ cup each dried fruit(choose 2 or 3: cherries, apricots, apple chips, mango, sun dried tomatoes)
• ¼ cup each nuts (choose 2 or 3: almonds, cashews, pistachios)
• 1½ cup crackers
• ¼ cup mustards and jams
• 1½ fresh vegetables (choose 2 or 3: snap peas, cherry tomatoes, sliced radishes, mini peppers)
• 1½ fresh fruits (choose 2 or 3: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, grapes)

Instructions

• Assemble all the ingredients on the kitchen counter and group by category.
• Slice any hard cheeses and fresh fruits and vegetables that need slicing.
• Put the jams, mustards, pickles, olives, and nuts in small jars or bowls.
• Space the jars and bowls a few inches apart on the board.
• Place the meats and cheeses around and between the jars.
• Add the dried fruits, fresh fruits and vegetables, and crackers to the board.
• Add knives and spoons to soft cheeses, jams, and mustards.
• Serve and enjoy, replenishing as needed.