Chocolates? For Valentine’s? Groundbreaking. Spread the love with a V-Day charcuterie board filled with your favorite chamoy treats.
Valentine’s Day is almost here and what better way to celebrate the holiday of love than a custom charcuterie board, with a little fun twist: chamoy.
Whether it’s just you and that special person, or you’re sharing it with the whole family and friends, making something yourself is the best way to celebrate this special day.
Why Is It Called Charcuterie?
Traditionally, charcuterie refers to the French art of preparing and assembling cured meats and other meat products.
Today, charcuterie boards are more likely than not composed of a mix of meats, cheese, dried fruits, marmalades or jams, crackers and other preserves—and let us tell you, these boards are practically everywhere. In fact, we would say they’re the party appetizer staple of our times.
It makes sense. Charcuterie boards are so popular these days because they can easily be made in advance, they serve a lot of people with little work, and everybody just loves them.
Plus, they offer a variety of options, so anyone is bound to find something they want to snack on—you can’t go wrong!
How Do You Treat The Chamoy Lovers In Your Life?
We recently had the idea to make a Valentine’s Day charcuterie board for our friends and family dinner, but we wanted our own Mexican take on this celebration.
Why not cover the entire board with our favorite treats and sauces?, we thought. That’s how we came up with our delicious Cha-MOY-cuterie Board.
Read on and we’ll show you how to make a mouthwatering Cha-MOY-cuterie Board with these easy tips so you can also build your own creation at home.
But first…
What Is Chamoy?
Chamoy is the popular Mexican candy made of a sweet and spicy combination of dried fruit, chiles, sugar, and lime.
This mixture is made into sauces, dips, sticky pastes and candy. In Mexico, chamoy is used with any type of food, from meat to shaved ice, plus it’s naturally suitable for vegans and vegetarians.
What’s not to love?
You can learn more about chamoy, its history and different uses here.
Make A Gorgeous Chamoy Board With The Right Foundation
Ever go to a party and see a beautiful appetizer board, but wonder how they curated it to look a certain way?
One of the things we’ve learned about assembling a Cha-MOY-cuterie Board is that presentation is key. There’s a saying that we eat with our eyes, so you want things to look as effortless and beautiful as possible.
Let’s face it. We’re Mexican perfectionists and we want to impress our suegras and tías, too. But the beauty of appetizer boards lies in its carefree nature, hence why we always have one when we get together with the family.
1. Start with a basic charcuterie board.
It’s amazing once you start looking around, how many charcuterie boards there are online. Many of them are not made of sustainable materials or will take some weird flavors due to their absorbing materials.
It can be quite overwhelming!
Fret not, we suggest using a non-porous hardwood, like bamboo, maple or olive; even a kitchen slate or a marble board will do.
You can stock up on multiple boards of different sizes and use the best one for the number of guests you’ll be hosting. Typically, a 20” x 12” will serve a large crowd, while a 12” x 8” will be enough for up to six people.
Most boards are easy to clean with warm water and dish soap. While some can go in the dishwasher, it’s best to hand wash them for longevity purposes.
If a wooden board fits your lifestyle and matches your aesthetic preferences better, we recommend oiling it every few months.
Consider looking for boards with rubber feet on the bottom to ensure it won’t slide around on your table as guests serve themselves and won’t scratch your table surface.
2. Small bowls, plates, and the right utensils make for the best eye-catching accessories to your board.
A charcuterie board can be as simple or extravagant as you want it to be.
The best way to keep a neat, clutter-free Cha-MOY-cuterie Board is by grouping some foods together and serving them in their designated container. Think of jams and sauces, for example.
Small containers, such as ramekins, provide you with the perfect vessels for cacahuates, jams, sauces, and fruits. They serve as gorgeous focal points for your guests and create an interesting dimension on the flat, horizontal surface of your main board.
Consider multiple serving tongs and spoons, spreader knives, and toothpicks for the occasion. Place plates, forks, and napkins nearby or right next to the board.
3. Now that you’ve gathered your board and all other accessories together, it’s time to style!
Begin styling your Cha-MOY-cuterie Board by arranging your bowls or ramekins and other round shapes. Don’t put them next to each other, though.
Avoid the same category items touching by spreading them out.
Another thing to keep in mind: work in odd numbers. When building your board, you’ll achieve a more organic vs. perfect look by working with odd numbers instead of even numbers.
Tweak and adjust as needed to achieve the look you want! You’ll likely want to move things around as you go.
Let Your Cha-MOY-cuterie Board Shine With The Tastiest Of Ingredients
Chamoy is the best ingredient to amp up the romance—and heat—for Valentine’s Day.
When it comes to building a Cha-MOY-cuterie Board, part of the fun is picking all the items to go on it. The best part? Sophia’s Spicy Treats has you covered.
Not your average charcuterie board.
When thinking of making a platter of chamoy and other savory Mexican delicacies, planning ahead goes a long way.
Shopping lists are so handy when it comes to thinking of the best varieties and pairings for the day.
1. Start with sauces and dips. Mexican chamoy entered the chat.
Remember the rule of three? Pick three sauces or pastes for your chamoy platter. This is a great way to add a variety of textures for candy lovers.
This is a great way to add a variety of textures. Sophia’s Spicy Treats offers four different chamoy sauces: Classic, Watermelon, Mango, and Spicy. Runny and savory, these sauces complement fresh vegetable sticks perfectly.
Chamoy Dip Rim Pastes are great for dipping. We have many flavors, too. From Classic Chamoy and Spicy, to Mango and Watermelon. Sticky and gooey, these rim pastes bring fruit to the next level.
2. Fresh fruit and veggies are a must.
You can easily chop jicama, cucumbers, and carrots into long sticks to add some healthy goodness to your board.
Place them on ramekins and small bowls. These are usually the tallest, so they’ll look best somewhere on the center of the board.
3. Next, move on to your biggest pieces and arrange by category.
Since we’re making a Cha-MOY-cuterie Board for Valentine’s Day, think of having heart-shaped watermelon wedges placed somewhat evenly around the board.
You can also prop and lean clementine and apple wedges onto the saucers and small bowls. Make sure to keep these a bit closer to the edges so they are easily accessible.
Your cuñada la healthy will (finally) love you!
4. Carbs get a free-pass on Valentine’s Day.
Because really, what is an appetizer platter without chips and cacahuates? With so many options out there, you need to strategize and pick your best soldiers.
Long and dippable: Takis and Flaming Hot Cheetos. Munchable: cacahuates japoneses and chili-lime peanuts. Crunchy: Doritos and Ruffles. Healthy: dried fruit and veggie chips. You get the drill.
You can easily fill big empty spaces with nuts and chips. We like to alternate small selections across the board based on their shapes, which helps create more visual interest.
Place larger chips directly on the board and keep smaller ones, like nuts, in cute containers.
5. Don’t forget about those with a sweet tooth.
Sprinkle in the finishing touches with a bang: chamoy candy. Lucky for you, we have just the sweetest selection to bring together the Valentine’s theme for your Cha-MOY-cuterie Board.
Here are some of our favorite options:
Chamoy Peach Rings
Finger food is perfected with the right combination of sweet and spicy.
Chamoy Nerds Gummy Clusters
Like snacking on nuts, just better.
Chamoy Gushers
Chewy, soft, and everyone loves them!
Chamoy Candy Sampler
Comes with ten bags of all Sophia’s Spicy Treats, each with 2 oz for your sampling pleasure.
We decided to keep it simple, but you can load up on as many goodies as you want for your Cha-MOY-cuterie Board!
