Plant Based Charcuterie Board Inspiration

Have you noticed an uptick in the popularity of charcuterie boards lately? Maybe you saw this viral video going around the internet (car-coochie!) or it seems like every party and restaurant you’ve been to recently has them. We don’t see why omnivores should have all the fun, so we’ve put together some plant based charcuterie board inspiration for you to build the vegan board of your dreams. 

Charcuterie (pronounced shar-KOO-deh-ree) has come to be a catch-all term for almost any appetizer-style platter that features cured meats, cheeses, and a plethora of accompaniments. Is it still a charcuterie board if everything is plant based? We say hell yes! But if you disagree, you can call it whatever you want—it’ll still be delicious.

We’ve sourced inspiration from our private Facebook group, our free blog recipes, and our Plant Fueled Meal Plans. We’ll also include some guidance and lots of recipes to get you started. 

The most important thing to remember when making your plant based charcuterie board is that there are no rules! This is your board, you add what you want. Want to make it beautiful and social media ready? Great! Don’t care how it looks? That’s fine, too! You do you.

What to put on your plant based charcuterie board

As we said, there are no rules. However, if you’re going for something at least similar to what we’re featuring here, we’ve listed the most common elements to give you some guidance. How much you add will depend on how many people you’re feeding.

• Plant based cheeses: wedges, slices, cheese balls, spreads—mix it up
• Nuts or seeds: toasted, raw, salted, candied, etc.
• Fruit: fresh, dried, or both
• Spreads/dips: jams or jellies, hummus, mustards, sauces, tapenade, etc.
• Crackers, bread, or chips: used for dipping or for topping with whatever else is on your board
• Other tasty finger foods: plant based meatballs, bite-sized savory or sweet foods, olives, chopped veggies, small pickled or fermented items, etc. 

Going for a mix of textures, colors, and flavors will help your charcuterie board look and taste amazing. Part of the fun is putting different things together and seeing how they taste.

Plant based charcuterie boards from our community

Check out these boards from the creative Dirties in our Facebook group! Most include one or more of our original plant-based recipes. Some include store-bought vegan meats, vegan cheeses, or products containing oil (and that’s just fine!).

Recipes for your plant based charcuterie board

Between the free recipes available here on our blog and the 3,000+ recipes available to subscribers in our digital classroom, we have lots of ideas for your plant based charcuterie board.

Platters

First, if you’re a subscriber, you can find some great all-inclusive recipes to follow by choosing the Platters filter when searching in the Recipe Vault. Here are some of our favorite platters from the classroom.

Plant based cheese

Here are some tasty cheese and cheesy sauce recipes that will be perfect for your charcuterie board.

Free blog recipes

Vegan Cashew Cheese
Plant Based Smoky Ranch Cheese Ball
Plant Based Smoky Gouda Cheese Sauce

Recipes from the classroom

Smoky Maple Almond Cheese Spread
Cheddary Cashew Cheese
Mediterranean Marinated Tofu Feta
Smoky Ranch Cheese Ball

Nuts and seeds

We love having toasted or seasoned nuts and seeds on hand for all sorts of things. These are great to add a crunchy element to your board.

Free blog recipes

Tamari Roasted Sunflower Seeds
Toasted Garlicky Pumpkin Seeds

Recipes from the classroom

Praline Nuts & Seeds
Toasted Nuts & Seeds Trio
Spiced Party Nuts

Spreads and dips

These recipes will take your plant based charcuterie board to the next level. There are lots of different options to choose from. If you have more than one dip or spread, try to pick some with different flavor profiles.

Free blog recipes

Mushroom Walnut Paté
Creamy Maple & Toasted Pecan Dip
Black Bean Hummus

Recipes from the classroom

Speedy Strawberry Basil Jam
Roasted Garlic Eggplant Spread
Tangy Herb Dip

Crackers, bread, and chips

What good is a dip or a spread without something to dip with or spread on? Some sort of cracker, bread, or chip is a must for charcuterie boards. Check out our favorites below. 

Free blog recipes

Whole-Food Plant-Based Crackers
Sweet Potato Flatbread
Chili Lime Spiked Corn Chips

Recipes from the classroom

Rustic Rye Bread
Simple Seed Crackers
Zesty Pita Chips

Others

If you want to go the whole nine yards for your plant based charcuterie board, it can be great to add some finger food items to accompany everything else. 

Free blog recipes

Whole-Food Plant-Based Deviled Eggs
Dark Chocolate Almond Truffles
Curry Roasted Cauliflower

Recipes from the classroom

Flavor Poppin’ Poppers
Hot Maple Glazed Meatballs
Oven-fried Mushrooms

We hope we’ve inspired you to put together your own plant based charcuterie board for your next special occasion…or tonight’s dinner. They’re only as complicated as you choose to make them, so start small if you’re intimidated. Make everything that requires cooking ahead of time, pre-chop your veggies or fruit, and leave spreads or dips in whatever containers they’re stored in to make things even easier.

If you’ve made a plant based charcuterie board, let us know in the comments. We’d love to hear your ideas!

Wishing you a happy car-coochie!

Xo
Team Dirty