How to Make a Charcuterie and Cheese Board

Cheese boards and charcuterie platters have gone from being specialty offerings to expected at many parties, whether it's a small group for dinner or a big holiday bash. While you can always pick up a few things and throw them on a platter, there is an art to arranging cheese and charcuterie boards. Here are some tips for taking your boards from grocery store basic to a custom charcuterie and cheese work of art.

Select your cheeses

It helps to start planning with an idea of how many different cheeses you want to include. "The rule of thumb is you want to stick to an odd number," explains Lauren Toth, the training and curriculum manager at Murray's Cheeses. Depending on how many people are eating cheese, three or five is a good number. There's nothing set and fast about it — if you want to do two or four, that's fine — but cheese wisdom calls for using an odd number.

Within those parameters you want to have a little bit of variety in both texture and taste. "There's an old saying among cheesemongers: something old, something new, something stinky, and something blue." You don't have to include all of those things if it's not to your liking, but it's a nice, easy format for representing what could be on a plate — an aged cheese, a newer cheese, and a more adventurous one would make an excellent board. Toth likes to alternate what kinds of milk the cheeses are from, so she'll have, say, a sheep's milk cheese, a cow's milk cheese, and a goat's milk cheese on the same board. Or, she suggests, you can choose by country or region. Maybe one board will be all Wisconsin cheeses and another is all from Vermont, Spain, or Greece. Above all, if you're actually shopping for cheese in person, ask a cheesemonger. "Cheese people are very excited to share their knowledge with you and to make recommendations based on your taste," Toth says.

Pair charcuterie with the cheese

Whether you start by picking the cheese or the charcuterie first, you should try to source varieties that pair well together. A salt-cured pork, like serrano ham, prosciutto, or country ham, pairs nicely with Parmigiano Reggiano or mild Alpine-style cheeses, but if you are looking for contrast, go for a creamy, pillowy burrata or other fresh mozzarella. The pepper and spice in a dry-cured salami like saucisson sec or chorizo seco or a 'nduja welcomes a tangy, creamy goat cheese or Brie to tame it. Classic finocchiona is cured with fennel, which makes it work well with a nutty gouda as well as a pecorino or another sheep's milk cheese.

Make room for the right cracker

Cheese and crackers make a classic combination, but you don't have to stop there. Milder cheeses can pair well with shortbread cookies or oat cakes. "Sweet items sometimes can surprise people on a cheese board and give people permission to go outside the box," Toth said. As with the cheeses, Toth encourages using a variety of crackers for the board, keeping different textured crackers in mind. "I might do a more plain, basic, straightforward one and then throw in a more rustic cracker."

Don't forget pickles, fruit, jams, olives, honey, and nuts

In addition to the crackers, you can fill in some of the gaps in a charcuterie and cheese board with smaller tasty morsels that pair well with your cheese. Fresh cantaloupe is a perfect contrast to salt-cured prosciutto, while apples and pears are natural partners to a runny Brie. Pickles and olives have enough acidity and saltiness to cut through the richness of most cheeses. Toth is a particular fan of cornichons, since they fit well onto a board, are easy to pick up, and keep well for a long time in the fridge.

You don't have to stop with traditional pickles — pickled carrots, fennel, and sweet peppers stand out on a board with so many options. Marcona almonds are another classic addition, as well as dried fruit, like Blenheim apricots, which not only give a nice textural and flavor contrast to the cheeses, they also add a pop of bright orange to the board.

Jam, chutney, or honey are other nice touches that let guests create mini open-faced sandwiches with their cheese, charcuterie, and crackers. If you don't know where to start, go with fig jam; it's a classic for a reason, and adds a sweet counterpoint to salty charcuterie and cheese. Honey is also a near-universal cheese accompaniment, and for a little extra pizazz, you can add a whole honeycomb to the board with a knife for cutting. "It's a conversation piece," Toth notes.

Make it pretty

Now that you have your cheeses and other board accompaniments, you want to think about which items take up the most room. If you have a cheese board, grab that. If not, a wooden cutting board will do just fine. Wooden boards are preferable if you are setting out large pieces of cheese for people to cut (no one wants to send a sharp knife into your prized vintage china platter). Put the biggest things down on the board first. Those are usually the cheeses, charcuterie, and crackers or bread. At this point, Toth advises thinking about how people are going to eat the cheese. Pre-portioning cheese into chunks or wedges is a good way to guide guests. If you care about aesthetics, the portions are the way to go.

Once your charcuterie, cheese, and crackers are down on the board, fill in the gaps with whatever else you have. Nuts, olives, and dabs of preserves can occupy territory in between the cheeses. Just add them in any order that pleases your eye and allows for access to all the things on the board.

Consider several small boards

If you'd prefer to spread things out, make several small boards using the same principles as you would a big one, and station them around the room (or backyard or porch or rooftop) and make sure you have enough cheese tools to go around. This way, vegetarian guests can avoid charcuterie mingling with cheese, and your guests will be motivated to move around the room and keep the party flowing. This way, your charcuterie and cheese board feed your guests and keep the energy of your party going.