Fall Charcuterie Board Shopping Staples

There are few things as exciting as walking into a party and seeing a beautiful presentation of cured meats, assorted cheeses and fresh fruit, am I right? I mean, if there’s not food, I’m not going. But how do you create such a beautiful snack display, and what do you even buy? Lucky for you, I have all your charcuterie board questions answered right here with these Fall Charcuterie Board Shopping Staples!

Fall Charcuterie Board Shopping Staples

I was so happy to collaborate with my friend Carissa Staton, fellow recipe developer and charcuterie enthusiast that you may know as @broccyourbody, to work on this fall-inspired blog post to share our shopping staples for all of your fall gatherings and upcoming holiday celebrations. See those Bacon Wrapped Dates with Goat Cheese & Honey in the top of this photo? Grab her recipe for them here! They lasted a full 10 minutes in our house. SO good.

Obviously this year may look a little different in terms of getting together with family and friends, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still build a board at home for a smaller crowd (or even for yourself!). Practice your skills for a date night in or have a charcuterie night over Zoom/Facetime with your friends. Then, hopefully next year, you can show off your beautiful boards in person! Until then, you can always show off on Instagram.

Charcuterie Shopping Staples

Head to the store fully prepared and waste no time staring blankly into the cracker aisle by printing out and bringing along this helpful shopping list!

Charcuterie Shopping Tips

• Cheese – Curate an assortment of 3-5 different shapes, textures and flavors to suit everyone’s taste and up the contrast.
• Meat – Pick out 3-5 different cured meats that can be placed onto your board in different ways in terms of folding and slicing.
• Fruit – Fruit is great for being used interchangeably as a cracker. Plus, it makes the board extra beautiful! The more the merrier.
• Veggies – Including hummus in your spread? You’ll need veggies! Typically you’ll want to choose veggies you can slice and dip.
• Crackers/Breads – Pick your favorites and the dietary needs of your guests. Aim to select 3-5 different textures and shapes.
• Dips & Spreads – Consider what you’re serving and about what additions would compliment your assortment. 1-3 options work here.
• Other – What other pieces would add to your board? Think salty, sweet, crunchy little pieces that can be put in bowls or full in gaps. I have a great seasonal recipe for Oven Roasted Rosemary Cashews that you can try at the bottom of this post!
• Garnishes – Totally optional, but adding little herb garnish touches can take your board to the next level. Top cheese or fill gaps with the herbs.

Download the Shopping List PDF above for specific ingredients ideas so you have a guideline of what to look for!

Get Organized

So now you’ve got all of your ingredients and you may feel a little overwhelmed and unsure of where to start. Don’t stress! Here’s how to set yourself up for success:

1. Find a large open space to prep/build on. You’re going to need the space to have an area for all of your supplies, your board, any bowls/plates, cutting board, etc.
2. Make stations. In your open space, set up a prep station, all of your ingredients and your actual board.
   • Prep Station – cutting board, knives for cutting different types of fruit/cheese/veggies, a large bowl to discard any wrappers/pieces of produce you won’t need, a rag to wipe your hands on
   • Ingredients Station – align all your supplies in rimmed baking sheets by category (fruit with fruit, cheese next to cheese, etc.)
   • Building Station – your main board to build on along with any small plates, bowls and small serving spoons/knives
3. Prep. Make sure fruit and veggies are already washed, then begin unpackaging and cutting up necessary ingredients, placing them back into their categorized sections on the tray.
4. Build! Check out my blog post on Charcuterie Board Styling Tips & Tricks (click here!) to get all of my best advice on how to put together a beautiful and abundant board. Spoiler alert, you want to make sure each food category is separated/doesn’t touch. Head to my post for more!

Follow Along

I hope that these tips help you build your most beautiful board yet, and most importantly, that you have fun putting it together! Be sure to tag me in your creations on Instagram @kaylaskitchandfix and follow along for other tips and tricks, plus lots more!