Roots to Table Offers Tips For Small Charcuterie Boards

Cheeseboard seller Roots to Table recently shared an article from the KraftHeinz website My Food and Family explaining “The Ins & Outs of Charcuterie Boards” for potential customers wanting to learn more about how to use the all natural bamboo charcuterie boards that Roots to Table sells. The company especially wanted to highlight this quote from the article:

“Call it a cheese board, a meat and cheese plate, or just plain tasty—charcuterie (pronounced shahr-koo-tuh-ree) boards are a great alternative to passed appetizers, warm apps, or otherwise fussy food options for cocktail hours and parties. And bonus: they’re classy as heck and make a real show-stopping impression when put together well. Learn how to put the perfect charcuterie board together for any upcoming movie night, birthday or gathering.”

The first step to building a charcuterie board is to pick a surface on which to arrange the components. The choice of board should be based on how many people will be eating from it, and the personal aesthetic of the person creating the board. Of course, the all natural bamboo board that Roots to Table sells on amazon.com is a great option, charcuterie boards can be arranged on many kinds of surfaces, so the sky is the limit. Non porous, food-grade materials are recommended, but can range from a large butcher block cutting board to a slice of food grade slate. Some people might decide to use a large porcelain serving plate for their charcuterie, or maybe a specialized charcuterie board from a home good store with dedicated labeled areas for each component. This article from My Food and Family suggests collecting small bowls or ramekins for smaller items and the moist and juicy foods, to keep, say, the olive juice from spreading to the brie, or, worse, the crackers.

Charcuterie boards can be built from a wide variety of components, but there are some primary categories that are used on most boards and offer a base for experimentation. The first, and arguably most important, part of a charcuterie board, is the cured meats. After all, “charcuterie” is French for “cured meat”. The deli counter at a local grocery store is a great place to start, and many packaged cured meat options contain bite-sized or pre-cut meats, which can make building and consuming the board a little easier for everyone involved. Cheese is also a well-loved component of charcuterie, and this article suggests including a hard cheese, a soft cheese, and a crumbly cheese, for a contrast of textures. Mixing and matching flavor profiles can also help make a more diverse and interesting board.

After meat and cheese, a charcuterie board needs something to put the meat and cheese on. Crackers and bread make for good options - a simple sliced baguette can be enough, but for a more interesting selection, the article suggests a variety of crackers in different shapes and flavors to offer choices of cracker and cheese pairings. Similarly, different textures can enhance the experience of a charcuterie board, so having a crunchy option like crackers or crostini along with a chewy option like fresh bread is an excellent choice.

While meat cheese and bread can make an entire charcuterie board, some people like to add other touches, including fruits, spreads, and nuts or other small savory bits. Any kind of fruit can feature on a charcuterie board, and a combination of fresh and dried fruit adds to the variety that is the spice of a charcuterie board. Anything larger than grapes or berries should be sliced thin for ease of use as well as artful arranging opportunities. Options for spreads to include on a charcuterie board (in a small bowl to keep them from spreading too much) could be anything from jams and jellys to mustards and chutneys. Spreads are a good way to add extra flavors and pairing options to the board, and different kinds of nuts can introduce a new texture to keep things interesting.