Meat and cheese

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MEAT AND CHEESEBOARDS

PICKLES & DIPS

Add small bowls filled with dill pickles, olives, chutney, honey, spreads, mustard, jams and dips.

NUTS & SEEDS

They should be shelled and salted.

Consider almonds, pistachios, cashew, walnuts, pecans and peanuts – or pumpkin, sunflower or flax seeds.

FRUITS & VEGGIES

Both dried and fresh fruit, and roasted or raw vegetables, will add gorgeous colour, flavour and texture.

Consider assorted fresh berries, tomatoes, grapes, pears, apples, raisins, apricots, cherries, pomegranates, dates, mangoes, bell peppers, carrots, cucumber, celery, corn.

GREENS

Add a few greens in-between. Include lettuce, rocket leaves, spinach, basil, mint, rosemary sprigs, thyme.

THE BOARD

Start with a large plate, platter, wooden cutting board, piece of slate or marble as the base.

CRACKERS

Variety is important so include buttery and flaky, as well as grain crackers.

BREAD

Add thinly sliced and toasted baguettes or bread-sticks.

CHEESE

Use a variety of hard and soft cheeses from mellow to sharp, sliced or in wedges. Cheddar, Gouda, Brie, Swiss, Edam, blue, mozzarella or processed cheese.

MEAT

About 3-4 slices of meat for each person.

Include a variety of flavours and textures – smoked and meaty, dry cured and firm, cooked and creamy.

Sliced pepper salami, prosciutto, ham, pepperoni, sausage, cured meat.

WINE

Light bodied reds and crisp acidic whites pair best with the salty and fatty content of the items on the board. Consider Barbera, Beaujolais, Sauvignon blanc, Pinot grigio.

THE ‘FOUR S’

Something sweet Something savoury Something salty Something spicy

ARRANGEMENT

STEP 1: PLATTER AND BOWLS

Choose a platter according to the size of the charcuterie board you wish to prepare. Add visual variation by using different sizes of bowls for pickles, dips, nuts and berries.

Place these bowls on your platter, and prop up your meats, crackers and other components.

STEP 2: TEXTURE, SHAPE, COLOUR AND FLAVOUR

For texture – roll up, fold or fan out the meat, crumble or slice the cheese. For shape – place contrasting shapes near each other and put similarly shaped items farther away from each other.

For colour – add contrast to your board by mixing up the colours.

For flavour – place items that go nicely together near each other and away from clashing components.

STEP 3: FILL THE SPACE

Reserve the smaller and neutral items to fill the empty spaces. Nuts and crackers work well for this. Once you’ve placed your main components, sprinkle nuts or scoot in some crackers to fill in all the empty spaces on your board.