Make a splash Add colour to your salads
Elli Jacobs shares her tips and tricks for arranging a mouthwatering showpiece charcuterie board for your Christmas table.
Acharcuterie board is essentially a culinary choose-your-own-adventure story. It’s made up of an assortment of cold, cooked and cured meats, and supported by a selection of cheeses, dips, spreads, tangy pickles, crackers, and fresh fruit and vegetables, all perfectly arranged on a board or platter. Originating from the French chair (flesh) and
cuit (cooked), and pronounced ‘‘shar-coo-tur-ree’’, the dish first appeared hundreds of years ago in Europe as a ‘‘mezze’’ of cured meats that highlighted traditional forms of meat preservation and flavour enhancement.
Nicola Romano, the Italian-born head chef at Melbourne restaurant Oster, says that for Italians, a charcuterie board will appear at the table without fail when friends or family get together.
‘‘The wonderful thing about a charcuterie board is its versatility,’’ he says. ‘‘You can mix and match flavours to magnify enjoyment and combine textures and colours to offer variety and visual appeal, which makes it an ideal centrepiece for a festive gathering, to serve as a host or to take as a guest.’’
To build a first-class charcuterie board, Romano suggests first answering the following questions:
■ Do you want to focus on a particular region’s food culture, or combine items from different countries?
■ What can you buy at your local supermarket? Do you need to visit a specialty grocer?
■ What dietary needs do you need to accommodate?
As a guide, if the charcuterie is to be served as a starter, you’ll need about 50g of cured meat per person. If it’s a main, estimate 150g a person.
‘‘And ideally for your vegan and gluten-free guests make separate boards as it’s a way of showing respect towards them,’’ he says.
For instance, remove bread or crackers from a gluten-free board, and substitute fig ‘‘salami’’ for Italian salami, and hummus for pate, or make a mushroom pate, or cashew cream for a vegan board.
Meat
Salami: Hard salamis are a must on any charcuterie board. Romano particularly recommends cacciatore salami, also known as hunter’s salami.
‘‘This dry-cured salami is flavoured with juniper berries and chianti wine, yet it’s surprisingly mild and delicate in flavour.’’
Prosciutto: Italian ham that’s salted and airdried, usually thinly sliced and served raw.
Bresaola: ‘‘One of the few renowned cured meats not made from pork. Italian beef tenderloin is salted, air-dried with a sweet musty smell,’’ Romano says.
Seafood
If you prefer to use fish over cured meat, Richard Longden, chef at Eyre Peninsula Seafoods in South Australia, recommends choosing two or three types of seafood that can be left out for grazing.
Octopus: Longden suggests marinating raw octopus overnight in red wine, garlic and bay leaves, before cooking in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for two hours. Just before serving, grill for a few minutes then drizzle with olive oil and lemon.
‘‘The smoky, garlic and lemon aromas will definitely wow your guests.’’
Prawns: ‘‘Simply buy large whole cooked prawns, defrost and serve,’’ Longden says. If you prefer fried prawns, simple favourites include pubstyle beer-battered or garlic butter prawns.
Mussels: ‘‘Barbecue pot-ready mussels until they all open, remove one shell, add a teaspoon of gremolata [a mix of garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, chopped parsley, and olive oil], and season with freshly ground pepper,’’ Longden recommends.
Cheese
How many cheeses you put out will depend on what time of day you’re planning on serving your platter, says Paul Broughton of Featherston cheesemonger, C’est Cheese – more for a midafternoon grazing platter, fewer for dessert and how many people you’re catering, but convention says you should have an odd number of cheeses.
For a decent between meals snack on Christmas Day, Broughton recommends about seven, ranging from soft and mild to hard and strong.
‘‘Particularly given the year that we’ve had, I think the Christmas cheeseboard should celebrate our local cheesemakers.’’
Mild-soft: Black Tie, from The Drunken Nanny in Martinborough, is a black ash goat’s milk cheese. The ash coating doesn’t do much for the flavour apart from neutralising acidity, but it means this popular creamy cheese ‘‘looks fantastic on the cheeseboard’’.
Medium-soft: Washed rind cheeses, like those C’est Cheese produces through its in-house line Remutaka Pass Creamery, is notable for its distinctive coloured rind, or crust, strong smell, and earthy flavour. These are washed with local wine or beer, and have a texture similar to a brie, but a stronger flavour than we’re used to from a brie in New Zealand.
Medium-soft: ‘‘Christmas wouldn’t be complete without putting a black truffle brie on the board,’’ Broughton says. The OMG brie is a signature cheese from Over the Moon in Pu¯ ta¯ ruru, an earthy brie with a flavour and aroma that is intensified by a layer of truffle.
‘‘Everyone loves it, it’s a really good-looking cheese, and very much a celebration style of cheese.’’
Strong-soft: ‘‘My pick is it’s one of the best blues in New Zealand at the moment,’’ says Broughton of Katikati cheesemaker Mount Eliza’s Blue Monkey. Made in the Stilton style, this is a buttery cheese with a crumbly texture and rich blue flavours marbled throughout.
Medium-hard: A blend of cow’s and goat’s milks, Five Forks from Whitestone in Oamaru is aged to give it a crumbly texture and heaps of flavour. ‘‘It’s a really good match with white wines,’’ Broughton says.
Medium-hard: Ewe’s milk has a distinctive sweet, nutty flavour that comes through in Kingsmeade’s Wairarapa Jack. Aged and hardpressed, it has a flaky texture similar to an aged cheddar and rich flavours.
Strong-hard: Ma¯ hoe Farmhouse in the Bay of Islands makes its edam in the traditional Dutch style.
The much-hailed Very Old Edam is, unsurprisingly, well-aged for at least 10 months, and is far from the mild edams usually sold in supermarkets. It’s very firm, even crunchy, and nutty with floral undertones.
Accessories
Once again, there are a lot of great local options here. Broughton recommended giving guests a variety of options that could be eaten as a bite with cheese on bread or a cracker, or as a separate nibble.
‘‘There’s no hard and fast rule. I would suggest you try them on their own and then combine them, because it does change the flavour of the cheese when you have it with something else. It’s good to try the cheese on its own first and then experiment.’’
Fruit: Offer plenty of seasonal berries and stone fruits, Broughton says, and don’t worry if they’re a bit tart. ‘‘If you have a very creamy cheese, it’s good to have something with a little bit of bite, to complement that.’’
Pastes and jellies: Several Kiwi producers are making these with port or whisky, which are perfect for Christmas. Wellington’s Beer Belly Jellies, for example, makes them with a range of beers including pilsner, IPA and oatmeal stout, as well as gin, blended scotch, and ruby port.
Cured meats: Producers such as A Lady Butcher and Woody’s Free Range Farm are making beautiful charcuterie products using ethically reared, free-range animals. Something like salami could be eaten on its own, while prosciutto pairs well with blue cheese.
Pickles: Again, you can have some fun with celebratory products here, like the whisky pickled carrots or gin pickled cucumbers from Choice Fruits in Carterton. ‘‘My favourite are [from] Pickle & Pie from Wellington,’’ Broughton says.
Honey and honeycomb: An excellent match for a variety of cheeses, with an abundance of New Zealand producers to choose from.
Tassos Dermetzoglou, of The Thornbury Fromagerie in Melbourne, says there are two considerations when choosing the supporting cast and arranging the board. What else do I need so my guests will enjoy the main items? And what would enhance their flavours, by complementing them or contrasting them with sweet and sour or salty and acidic tastes?
Dermetzoglou says odd numbers work well. For example, five meats, five cheeses and three accompaniments (crackers, fresh figs and nuts), would highlight the nutty flavours of aged firm cheeses.
Dips: An easy addition that can be store-bought or homemade – from a Mediterranean white bean dip for pita chips, a Mexican taco dip for tortilla chips, or a sriracha mayonnaise for prawns. Dips allow you to add bowls to the platter to visually break up and physically support other components.
Fruit: Add fresh and dried fruits that pair well with your meats and cheeses. For example, berries with soft cheese, fresh figs or rockmelon with prosciutto, and dried figs with blue cheese.
Vegetables: In addition to raw celery and carrot sticks, consider roasted cauliflower, red capsicum or asparagus.
Olives: Kalamata olives have a smooth meaty texture, but any black or green olive will add a briny pop of flavour.
Pickles: Cornichons (tiny fermented cucumbers), or giardiniera, Italian-style pickled vegetables, add crunch and zing.
Condiments: ‘‘Truffle honey is your go-to here,’’ Dermetzoglou says. ‘‘The sweetness will complement almost any cheese, but it’s the earthy truffle that changes the flavour profiles.’’ Other options include quince paste and fig jam.
Breads: A neutral cracker will add texture but will also allow the flavours to do the talking. Slices of lightly toasted baguette rubbed with olive oil and pencil-sized grissini are great ways to try spreadable fixings and dips.
Nuts and seeds: Toast macadamias, pistachios, pepitas or almonds to bring out their deep nutty flavour.
How to arrange the board
While there aren’t any fixed rules on how to set up a grazing platter, these tips will ensure it looks as good as it tastes.
Choose a platter size and shape to suit what you plan to serve. You may even opt to create a few smaller platters to share between tables. You will also need bowls for spreads and condiments, and cutlery to allow people to serve themselves.
Add variety to the overall presentation by placing smaller pieces next to larger pieces.
‘‘Ensure you’re still slicing and putting things on the board as guests are arriving as this ensures everything is fresh,’’ Romano says. ‘‘Meats and cheeses especially, tend to lose taste and texture the closer they are to room temperature.’’
Start with the biggest items, the cheeses, arranging them as far apart from each other as possible to make space for other things between.
‘‘Arrange your cheese in a way to showcase the variety. You want things to be scattered and off-set. If there’s a lot of depth and texture to the platter it’s more exciting and appetising,’’ Dermetzoglou says.
From a wheel-shaped cheese, cut a few wedges out and place the whole block on the board with a small knife so anyone who wants more can slice some up.
Crumble soft cheese on the board to act as a spread for crackers. Cut blocks of cheese into bitesized cubes or thin slices to add dimension.
Next, place bowls around the board to fill with dips, olives and condiments.
Place thin cuts of meat such as prosciutto on the board, folding larger round slices into quarters and fanning them out. Fold smaller slices in half only and arrange in a similar fashion. Cut sticks of salami into 5mm slices, adding toothpicks for safe picking.
Arrange bread and crackers on your board, and fill in the gaps with freshly cut vegetables, nuts, and dried fruits.
For a seafood platter, arrange in groups. You can cover the platter with ice or lettuce leaves.
‘‘Even before Covid-19, charcuterie boards always included cutlery such as small knives, spoons or forks, and toothpicks, to allow everyone to take their share from the common plate without creating disorder,’’ Romano says.