What Should Be on a Charcuterie Board? Eatable's Easy Guide To Making the Perfect Platter.

Does the word “charcuterie” sound intimidating? These delicious platters have been all the rage and are actually super easy to make your own version at home. 

To us, that means sitting down to think about what makes us happy and gathering a list of our favourite food to put on a nicely decorated, home-made charcuterie board in celebration of special occasions. It really is just this amazing, epic board filled with cured meats, cheese, fruits, nuts, crackers, and all the other ingredients you love the most.

“But do you only make charcuterie boards for special occasions like Christmas or Valentine’s day?”

Photo by Amy Shamblen on Unsplash

 

Nope! Anytime is a great time to celebrate – whether it is to celebrate the small or big wins, or the togetherness, or wanting to pamper yourself with quality ME time, or looking back at your milestones, or overcoming hardships and developing healthy habits. These are moments that are worth celebrating and we all deserve to pamper ourselves, (plus our loved ones) with the perfect platter. 

 

What does Charcuterie mean?

Pronounced as shar-KOO-tər-ee, the word “Charcuterie” is originally a French term, derived from chair, “meat” and cuit, “cooked”. Cold cooked meats were practically the primary components that made the foundation of a great charcuterie board.

Photo by Alex Guillaume on Unsplash

 

The word was also used in the past to describe old butcher shops that sold meat products made primarily from pork. As we all know now, a charcuterie platter does not necessarily need to only include pork products, but you can also incorporate other types of cold preservative meats as well.

In the modern days, we usually add a handful of cheese, fruits and crackers on the side, and serve it as an appetizer before the main course. 

 

Start with a board.

Photo by Lasseter Winery on Unsplash

 

Do you need a board prior to building your plate? 

Not really, but it is a fancy way to dress up your appetizer for the occasion you’re celebrating for. Traditionally, you want some kind of solid hardwood that will display and hold your food nicely, giving it an aesthetically pleasing background. Now you can find all kinds of charcuterie boards that are made of fancier materials, like a mix between hard and soft wood, marble, or bamboo. 

Now if you feel extra crafty, you can also choose to DIY your very own charcuterie board as a weekend project. 

 

What typically goes onto a Charcuterie Board?

You can almost always find these types of common food items on any charcuterie boards:

Photo by Tim Toomey on Unsplash

 

  • Cured meats
    • g. Salami, Prosciutto, Chorizo, Pepperoni, Mortadella, ‘Nduja, Speck, Coppa, Pancetta, Lardo, Bresaola, smoked salmon bites etc.
  • Hard and soft cheese
    • g. Mozzarella, Cheddar, Emmental, Gouda, Brie, Havarti, Provolone, Blue Cheese etc.
  • A handful of Nuts
    • Salted or caramelized pecans or walnuts, pistachios, hazelnuts, cashews, macadamia nuts, almonds or peanuts etc.
  • Fruits + Dried Fruits
    • Strawberries, blueberries, grapes, blackberries, dates, aam papad, peaches, prune, dried apricots or mulberries etc.
  • Olives for all you olive lovers
    • g. Kalamata, Castelvetrano, Liguria/Taggiasca, Cerignola, Arbequina, Picholine etc.
  • Bread slices or crackers
  • Spreads
    • Assorted jelly or jam, cashew dip, hummus etc.

Charcuterie board – The EATABLE Ways

Today we want to share with you two variations and step-by-step processes of how we made our charcuterie boards. 

Valentine’s day themed charcuterie board:

Serving: 3-4 people

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Course: Appetizer

 

Ingredients: 

 

Here’s how to recreate it: ⁠⁠

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1 - Place some containers in the middle of your board.⁠⁠
2 - Arrange all the ingredients in a symmetrical fashion.⁠⁠
3 - Fill the containers with popcorn that makes hearts POP.⁠⁠
4 -Serve with some of your favourite beverages (Cocktails, Mocktails, or both).

 

 

A dessert charcuterie board:

(Inspired by Cinthya Yamashiro)

 

 

 

Serving: 3-4 people

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Course: Dessert

 

Ingredients:

  • Your favourite candies, chocolate and marshmallows
  • Flavoured swiss cake rolls
  • Strawberry flavoured poke sticks
  • Salted and candied pretzels
  • Sugar biscuits
  • Pop the champagne EATABLE popcorn

This super cute dessert charcuterie board will definitely satisfy anyone who has a major sweet tooth.

 

An All-Canadian Charcuterie Board:

CANADIAN CHARCUTERIE GIFT BOX - EATABLE X FOODIE PAGES COLLABORATION

Looking for a quick way to get unique, Canadian charcuterie ingredients like no other? Check out our beloved EATABLE x Foodiepages Canadian Charcuterie gift boxThis special limited edition gift box celebrates a selection of great Canadian food brands and makers in one elegant and delicious gift box. It includes all the perfect accompaniments every host or hostess needs to impress guests at their next intimate dinner party, creating a one-of-a-kind charcuterie platter to remember!

We heard you want to be everyone's favourite host?

So next time when you need to pamper yourself, host a housewarming to treat guests (post-pandemic), or look for an appetizer or dessert recipe to celebrate any occasion, be sure to save this up and try give these ideas a try.

Already given these ideas a try? Give us a shoutout and let us know by tagging #MakeItEATABLE.

After all, you DO want to become everyone’s instant favourite… don’t you?

 

Here are some more recipes ideas to #MakeItEATABLE!