Making a picnic charcuterie board is easier than you think! With just a little planning and the tips here you’ll have an outdoor board worthy of any type gathering.

charcuterie board on picnic table with flowers and wine.

You could certainly make your board at home and cover it for transporting, but that can be awkward. A full size board won’t stow in most coolers and the elements on the board can shift around and get messy.

Instead follow these three steps for putting your board together at the picnic, not before you go.

Step 1: Plan

The Food

When you shop for the ingredients keep in mind that this is an outdoor board. Don’t buy anything that’s super sensitive to the summer heat.

Buying meats and cheeses that are already sliced and even pre-arranged in pretty stacks is a great idea. These “cracker cuts” of cheese are ideal!

package of sliced cheese on picnic table.

Keep condiments and messy items (like jams) to a minimum. One or two choices should be plenty.

What to pack it all in

For the platter in these photos we used almost all disposable bags and containers.

celery and other items for picnic charcuterie board in baggies.

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Sandwich bags were perfect for the meats, fruits, briney items and crackers. For the condiments/jams we used disposable shot glasses.

This homemade pimento cheese (or you could buy some) went into a short disposable drinking glass.

If you prefer to not go with disposable you should use flat, stacking containers like these.

Be sure you have on hand a cooler that sits flat and ice packs, preferably that will also sit flat on the bottom of the cooler.

cooler for picnic charcuterie board on table with flowers.

You’ll also be getting your hands messy arranging everything so you’ll want to have some hand sanitizer and paper towels or wipes.

The actual board or platter

Keep in mind that you don’t want anything heavy. Save your thick wooden board or marble slab for parties at home.

You could use a lightweight cutting board like one of these or a melamine platter. Our bamboo style one can be ordered from Amazon.

Step 2: Packing

Get it all ready

You’ll want to wash and dry your fruits first. If you’re using grapes go ahead and cut into smaller sections just right for one person. Then put it all in baggies or containers.

If the meat and cheese slices need to be cut into smaller pieces do that now. Then place them in the container or your choice.

Get the condiments into the shot glasses and any spreads (like our pimento cheese) into larger, but short glasses and cover with plastic wrap.

Pack it up

Start by lining the bottom of your cooler with ice packs. Then lay everything on top of those.

Wedge bags of fruit, etc. around the glasses that need to sit upright to keep them secure.

You’ll probably want a separate bag for items like any plates, napkins, the paper towels and sanitizer. Don’t forget a tablecloth!

Step 3: Assemble the board

We usually start with the items we have the most of and work our way down. In this case, and in most, you will start with your meats and cheeses.

making a picnic charcuterie board step 1.

To give your board a sense of order begin with a shape. On our breakfast charcuterie board and mini charcuterie board we started with an “S” shape.

For this one we just made a diagonal line across the platter. Then have fun with it, making sure to put your individual containers in place while you have room for them.

End up with the small items like the strawberries to fill in any empty spots and add color.