How to Make a Small Charcuterie Board

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You don’t need a special event to make a charcuterie board. An easy, small charcuterie board is the perfect dish to serve with a drink or even as a meal any night of the week. The options on how to create simple small charcuterie board are limitless. You can adjust any charcuterie board on this site into a small version. For a classic, small charcuterie board, choose your favorite ingredients such as crackers, cheese, meats, nuts, fruit, and vegetables and assemble them on a small board.

While a small charcuterie board is prefect for 2 people, you can go a step further and make a mini charcuterie board as a single serving by choose a very small board and just a few ingredients.

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What’s a Charcuterie Board?

A traditional charcuterie board was based around cured meats. Early charcuterie boards were often served with basic French and other European ingredients and served as simple meals for a few people. Over the years, charcuterie boards have come to refer to grazing boards and you can now find almost every type of ingredient on a charcuterie board.

Charcuterie boards, grazing boards, or even charcuterie tables are often served at special events such as parties and weddings. Often served with a selection of fresh ingredients cut into finger-sized pieces, charcuterie boards are now a staple at many restaurants and special events.

See more about the history of the charcuterie board.

Why Make a Small Charcuterie Board?

Making a large charcuterie board is perfect for a large event but it can take time and cost money to get the best charcuterie board ingredients. But a charcuterie board doesn’t need to be huge, expensive and complicated. Making a small charcuterie board can be the perfect dish for just a few people and can offer a variety of tastes and textures. Instead of one simple appetizer, an easy, small charcuterie board gives more options and can become an entire meal.

Best Small Charcuterie Boards

The base of a small charcuterie board design is the board itself. You can build a small charcuterie board on any small flat platter, plate or cutting board, or you can purchase a beautiful small charcuterie board that can be used again and again. Below you can see a few options of some small charcuterie boards or you can see some amazing options on ETSY.

Best Ingredients for a Small Charcuterie Board

You can truly use any ingredients to create a small charcuterie board, for a selection of some of the best charcuterie board ingredients, see more about charcuterie board ingredients. The charcuterie board we’ve created is a classic charcuterie board with traditional ingredients and is a great option for a small cheese platter for 2 – you can see a list of the exact ingredients in the recipe below. For this board we’ve included:

• Cheese: Choose 1-2 cheese options for your board. We used brie and gouda cheese for this board, but other great options include cheddar and mozzarella.
• Cured Meat: choose 1-2 selections of cured meats. We used salami and prosciutto for this board, but you can also use other types of sausage and ham.
• Fruit: We love to use fruit to add something sweet to our charcuterie boards. This board has strawberries, blueberries and we love to add apples and grapes
• Crackers: Choose 1-2 types of crackers for this mini charcuterie board. We chose some artisan crackers with a little flavor but big enough to stack a few other items on.
• Nuts: A few nuts will add a nice texture to your charcuterie board. We use plain almonds, but you can also select flavored nuts.
• Olives: Olives of any type of are great addition to a charcuterie board and we also love other foods like pickles.
• Vegetables: We love using vegetables for flavor and color. For this board we used cucumbers sliced. These can be used as finger foods but also used to stack food on like crackers.

How to Assemble Your Charcuterie Board

Once you’ve collected your ingredients, it’s easy to assemble your charcuterie board. With a small board you will want to build the board by placing foods in groups or lines. I usually start by placing the biggest items on the board and then building out from there. Try to separate the different colors, sizes and textures of the food to add visual appeal.

Think about how people will eat the food on your board – do you need toothpicks? Will people use their fingers? Do you need knives or serving utensils, napkins or small plates?

Serving a Small Charcuterie Board

Once you’ve assembled your charcuterie board, it’s time to serve it. Since you are serving a variety of ingredients on your board, you will want to assemble the board and serve immediately or within 10-30 minutes. Your board can be served room temperature.

We love serving this board as an appetizer for our family or as a charcuterie board for 2 and even as a small meal out on our patio.

Small Charcuterie Board Recipe

Common Questions about Making a Small Charcuterie Board

What size is a small charcuterie board?

In general a small and easy charcuterie board is under 9 x 12 inches. These charcuterie boards are usually either rectangular or circular. Even smaller boards can be made into a mini charcuterie board.

What meats are good for small charcuterie board?

In general, the best meats for a charcuterie board are cured meals such as hams and sausage. You can also use smoked salmon, meat spreads or other simple meats that can be served on bread or crackers or picked up as finger food.

What is the 3 3 3 3 rule for charcuterie board?

The 3 3 3 3 rule is 3 cheeses, 3 meats, 3 starches and 3 sweets for an amazing charcuterie board. This offers different colors, textures, and flavors.