Kia Logan, owner of All Things Charcuterie, has been creating charcuterie boards for five years now which started out as a hobby. For years, people told Kia to make this her job. She prayed about it and the next morning, she woke up with the name “All Things Charcuterie.”
The perfect board is about placement and ingredients. The most important thing is everything on your board must be quality.
Allow yourself one to two ounces of cheese and two ounces of meat per person. This will help you stay within budget. Start with thinking three cheeses, three meats, and three produce. This makes board decorating less complicated.
For cheeses, Kia suggests hard, like Parmesan, and soft such as brie or goat cheese, “If you're looking at a square board, you want to make sure you have cheese placed on all four sides. It makes it easy for people to go in and grab.”
Next is meats. You can choose meats like baked ham, pureed ham, or prosciutto. A small hallowed out red cabbage bowl is great for purees.
Crackers are placed next to the meats. “If you plate the cheese, the meat and the crackers next to each other, it's just a nice flow,” says Kia. The types of crackers you choose depends on how big your board is. Small circular crackers are perfect for smaller boards. For larger spreads, like a grazing table, Kia suggests longer flatbread crackers.
Then add produce. Fruits like watermelon or pineapple will soak your crackers or your nuts, so you’ll want to add things like grapes, strawberries, or dried apricots. Then you’ll see little filler spaces. Fill these with crackers, nuts, or even chocolate covered candies.
Then move on to placing the savory items like olives and pickles. Try not to overcrowd your board. Simply make two boards.
To finish, Kia adds a beautiful garnish like thyme or rosemary.
allthingscharcuterie.net
The perfect board is about placement and ingredients... everything on your board must be quality.