I make charcuterie boards for a living. Here are my 7 secrets to creating the best spread.
I own a charcuterie franchise, and I've found that thinly slicing meats, cutting fruit into stars, and layering by height upgrades any cheese board.
After spending four years in the charcuterie industry, I've developed seven secrets to creating the best charcuterie board. Amaan Bhanji, a franchise owner of a custom charcuterie-board company, has discovered what sets a good cheese spread apart from a great one.
Selecting ingredients is paramount, and I focus on vibrant colors, diverse flavors, and an appealing arrangement. The board should include cured meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables, breads, crackers, and nuts. A mix of spicy, salty, simple, and salty meats, along with a range of soft, hard, and aged cheeses, ensures a variety of textures and flavors.
For a visually stunning presentation, I prefer cutting meats into paper-thin circles, allowing them to be folded into shapes for added texture and visual interest. Prosciutto, in particular, can be folded into a train effect for added drama.
Cheeses should be cut into cubes, triangles, or circles depending on their consistency. For fruits and vegetables, I cut oranges and kiwis into stars, carrots into sticks, and cucumbers into circles or ribbons. When arranging the board, I place colorful fruits beside neutral elements to make the colors pop.
Charcuterie is about both taste and visual appeal, so I group foods by color, such as strawberries, red peppers, dried cranberries, or chocolate and nuts. Lastly, I vary the height of each item on the board to provide depth, keeping the elements from being at the same level.
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