How to Make an Epic Charcuterie Board (video!)

What is a charcuterie board? An Epic Charcuterie Board is filled with cured meats, cheese, veggies, nuts, olives, dried fruits, and crackers!

Friends, everyone asks, what is a charcutier board? Whether for dinner for the family, or an appetizer for a party, we are all about “charcuteries” here on RE!

Epic Charcuterie Board

This “how to make an Epic Charcuterie Board” post includes many ideas to inspire you to dive in and to make your own charcuterie or cheese board.

It will give you many ideas (the art of creating your own board), and photos of a variety of boards. Feel free to copy how we have put our boards together (below, an easy board for two). This post is reposted and updated from December 2017.

Looking for an easy summer entertaining recipe? Just set out an epic charcuterie board, and you will have happy guests. Especially now with the Big Board, it’s easy to make the ultimate charcuterie board to bring a party! 

Start off with the right size board for the number you are feeding! We recently brought this Summer Snack Board to a party with about 20 guests. Everyone had the right size “nibble” before the burgers and chicken was served. [Below, the 12×36″ Big Board.]

Why serve an epic charctuerie board?

We love to serve a charcuterie board for an appetizer or even a snack dinner. It’s delicious to make it according to the season, with fresh veggies and fruit, your favorite cheese, salami, and crackers.

Making a mouth-watering cheese board is fun. The varying colors and textures, with plenty of meat and cheese options, makes the board so delicious and beautiful. Then add in lots of fresh items. Use your artsy skills to make the best platter you can!

Epic means large!

When guests walk through the front door of a party, and see a gorgeous spread of meat and cheeses before them, I think right away it brings an excitement to the party. Everyone’s ready to dig in.

What does charcuterie mean?

Charcuterie is a French word pronounced “shahr-ku-tuh-ree” which means the process and beautiful creativity of  assembling cured meats and meat products. Charcuterie-style cheese boards often have more than just meat; which now involves cheese, dips, nuts, jams and jellies, olives, and more.

What typically goes on a charcuterie board?

Here’s a quick list of what typically goes on a meat and cheese board:

• Meats – Include a variety of meats like salami and proscuitto. 
• Cheese – We love to add a hard cheese and a soft cheese, like a parmesan or cheddar, and then a soft cheese like goat cheese, or creamy brie. Check out this Winter Brie Charcuterie Board.
• Crackers and bread – A sturdy cracker is important. Add a multigrain crackers or crisps, like our favorite Lesley Stowe Crackers. Bread is another option!
• Fruit (and veggies) – Fresh fruit is a favorite on our cheese boards, but you can also add dried fruit. Think of fruits and veggies that are in season, or that go well with dips and cheese. You may like this Eat the Rainbow Charcuterie Board full of beautiful colors.
• Olives – A varetiy of olives are used, from Pitted Olives Jubilee to Aglio Green Pitted Olives. We also love Kalamata olives, or an olive medley.
• Dips and spreads – Add your favorite cheese dip or savory spread. A small bowl of marmalade or fig jam is also tasty on a charcuterie board. Hummus is always a big hit, so check out this Ultimate Classic Hummus Board.
• Nuts – What’s your favorite nuts? Simply sprinkle a few around  the board, or fill in any open areas with nuts (almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, pecans, walnuts). We’ve layed down most nuts on a charcuterie board (but not peanuts, that do not seem to go with cheese and meat). You can pour them in small bowls, too, if you want to keep the nuts separate from other foods. I sell a great set of “nesting bowls” that are perfect for a charcuterie or cheese board.

How to Make an Epic Charcuterie Board

There are no hard rules for making a charcuterie. Make it your own, change it up, think outside the box! That is what makes charcuteries so interesting and fun; they are always different.

It’s all about creating and designing a board with snack food.

Start off with a big board. We prefer to use a large board with a lip around the outside so the food stays on the board. Have you ever been to a party where there are several charcuterie boards, and within minutes, the counter is a big mess?

Using a board with a raised edge eliminates the mess, and keeps the food nice and tidy. 

Check out this post: How to make a Charcuterie Board for more tips! 

Ingredients for this Epic Charcuterie Board

Today I’m showing you How to Make an Epic Charcuterie Board! (A smaller version, visit my Meat, Cheese and Olive Charcuterie Board recipe:) 

For this epic board today, we used these ingredients:

• Olive Bruschetta
• Roasted Pepper Bruschett
• Garden Vegetable Bruschetta
• Red Wine Salami, sliced
• Black Pepper Dry Cured Sausage, sliced
• Italian Herb Dry Cured Sausage, sliced
• Sweet Casalingo Dry Cured Sausage, sliced
• Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• Soft cheese
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for dipping
• Roasted Garlic & Parmesan Seasoning Spices
• Garlic Pepper & Tomato Seasoning Spices
• Crostini Original (bread or crackers)
• Sun-Dried Tomato & Basil Seasoning Spices
• Rosemary & Garlic Seasoning Spices
• Baguette Bread
• Veggies and miscellaneous crackers
• Figs, sliced
• Almonds
• Olives

How to arrange a cheese board

1. Start with small bowls to add olives, nuts, or wet ingredients. For this board we added olive oil and the bruschetta. Arrange the bowls on the board.
2. Fill in the spaces with meats, cheeses, vegetables, crackers, figs, etc.
3. Next, add baguette slices.
4. Garnish the board with fresh herbs! For this board we added small tangerines on a stick, for a beautiful fall board.

Building boards is easy. No board is ever the same.

Make it your own, use what you have. And never apologize for a culinary mistake.

More charcuterie board recipes:

Grab all of my THE BIG BOARD ideas!

Have you ever made an epic grilled breakfast charcuterie board? (photo above)?

Best Charcuterie Board

How to make a Fall Cheese Board

This beautiful Winter Burrata Charcuterie Board 

Easy Winter Charcuterie Board

Epic Vegan Charcuterie Board

My BIG BOARDS do not need to be seasoned, but if you need to season a board:

How to Season a Charcuterie Board

Big Boards for Families

And have you ordered my new book yet? Thank you so much for your love and support! Every recipe in Big Boards for Families has a gorgeous photo and recipe to try! You can also preorder Reluctant Entertainer’s Big Boards and More (October 2022).

Did you know that Reluctant Entertainer was featured in a NY Post article?! So cool.

Enjoy bringing people together with great food, and I think you’ll be surprised how casual and easy it is to serve a charcuterie board!

What do you do with leftover charcuterie?

Everyone asks me when we serve these big boards, what do we do with the leftovers? Rarely are there any leftovers, but if there are (meats, cheese, olives), here are a few ideas.

Leftover Charcuterie Board Pizza

Leftover Thanksgiving Epic Charcuterie Board

Charcuterie Puff Pastry Tart

The Big Board®

Friends, The Big Board® is here! Yes, I’ve partnered with JK Adams, the premier woodmaking company in Vermont, with my own line of RE boards! [The first photo in this post is the old 28-inch board that is no longer available.]

• 20-inch round, maple
• 26-inch round, maple
• 12 x 36-inch maple
• 12 x 24-inch maple
• NEW 12×24” travel board
• 26-inch ebonized BLACK, cherry
• 12 x 36-inch ebonized BLACK, cherry
• A board with a lip (or raised edged) so the food doesn’t fall off
• FOOD SAFE
• Made in the USA
• Undercut handles (a unique design)

Thank you for your support, as we’ve sold out so many times already!

Order The Big Board® today!

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How to Make an Epic Charcuterie Board

Servings: 12

Prep Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 30 mins

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Italian

This Epic Charcuterie Board is filled with cured meats, cheese, veggies, nuts, olives, dried fruits, and crackers! Use the 26-inch Big Board for this epic spread.

Ingredients

• 1 jar Italian Olive Bruschetta
• 1 jar Italian Roasted Pepper Bruschett
• 1 jar Italian Garden Vegetable Bruschetta
• Red Wine Salami, sliced
• Black Pepper Dry Cured Sausage, sliced
• Italian Herb Dry Cured Sausage, sliced
• Sweet Casalingo Dry Cured Sausage, sliced
• Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• Soft cheese
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for dipping
• Roasted Garlic & Parmesan Seasoning Spices
• Garlic Pepper & Tomato Seasoning Spices
• Crostini Original (bread or crackers)
• Sun-Dried Tomato & Basil Seasoning Spices
• Rosemary & Garlic Seasoning Spices
• Baguette Bread
• Veggies and miscellaneous crackers
• Figs, sliced
• Almonds
• Olives

Instructions

• Set out a large epic board and gather small bowls.
• Slice meats, and place on the board with cheese.
• Wash and dry fruits and vegetables; thinly slice.
• Place small bowls on your board and fill with olives, nuts and bruschetta (or any other favorite dips).
• Lay down 3-4 flatter small dishes and fill with olive oil; sprinkle with DeLallo Foods dipping spices.
• Place meats, cheeses, sliced baguette and crackers around the board.
• Lay fruits and vegetables around the board.
• Fill in blank spots with salami pieces folded in quarters.
• Optional to garnish with fresh herbs, or take a long skewer and place small tangerines on it for a pretty garnish.
• Serve with small appetizer plates and dig in!

Video

Notes

This post is reposted from December 2017.

Did you make this recipe?Tag @reluctantentertainer on Instagram and hashtag it #reluctantentertainer!

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