Easy Charcuterie Skewers: Fancy Appetizers Without The Price Tag

It’s the holiday hosting hack that looks fancy but takes minutes! Why fuss with a giant board when you can serve all the best parts of charcuterie (meats, cheeses, and extras) on a stick?

Charcuterie skewers are the classy, bite-sized upgrade your holiday spread has been waiting for. They’re colorful, customizable, and ridiculously easy to assemble, making them the perfect grab-and-go appetizer for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any festive gathering.

Guests will love them, and you’ll love how little effort it takes!

Why You’ll Love These Charcuterie Skewers

They’re EASY – You can put these together in minutes. They are an easy grab and go item that doesn’t need to look perfect. Plus, charcuterie skewers aren’t messy or difficult to eat.

They look fancy – A platter of these charcuterie skewers can become a colorful edible centerpiece for your table.

They’re customizable – I’ll share which ingredients I used, but truly the possibilities are endless. Cater to what your guests will love the most and/or your budget. Plus, once you buy the supplies, you can make a lot of skewers out of them. This makes them perfect for larger parties and gatherings.

They’re hearty – Want something that actually keeps your guests happy until dinner? These will do it!

They make for easy entertaining – It’s both an appetizer AND an activity if you let guests build their own handheld skewer. (My kids loved doing this)

Ingredients For These Skewers

Here’s what’s in the charcuterie skewers in the pictures. I chose items I knew my whole family would love.

• Skewers
• Cheddar cheese cubes
• Salami (Mine was a little bigger than I liked. Try to find these small. The bigger they are, the harder it is to put on the stick)
• Olives (no pits)
• Pickles (dill, cut into pieces)
• Mozzarella balls
• Grape tomatoes

Note: I chose two types of cheeses that were shaped differently and added the olives and tomatoes for color. When choosing your ingredients, you’ll want color, flavor, and shape differences.

More Ideas for Charcuterie Ingredients

• Any cheese that doesn’t crumble easily. Some good options are gouda, cheddar, colby, harvarti, and gruyere.
• Meats like Genoa salami, pepperoni, prosciutto, or summer sausage
• Bread & butter or spicy pickles instead of dill pickels
• Green olives
• Bell pepper
• Sliced cucumber
• Grapes (great for kids!)
• Strawberry (My son added this to his and loved it)

How to Make These Fun Charcuterie Skewers

• First, Choose your ingredients.
• Dry the olives, pickles, and if anything is marinated (my mozzarella was). This will prevent anything from leaking onto the other items.
• Put your items on the skewer. You’ll want to think about making the charcuterie skewer look appealing, but also if juice will get on anything you don’t want it to. For example, you won’t likely want pickle juice on a piece of strawberry.

That’s it! What an easy holiday appetizer!

Related: Fun Cheap Christmas Appetizers

Smart Money Saving Tips For Charcuterie Skewers

While these charcuterie skewers are already easy and budget-friendly, these tips help you keep your costs down even more.

Start with what you have

Check your pantry and fridge for items you already have like cheese, tomatoes, olives, and pickles. If you have anything that needs to be used up, this is a great recipe to get it eaten.

Go easy on the Meats

Meats and cheese are the most expensive (and least healthy) part of this holiday appetizer. If you’re on a budget or trying to be healthy, go lighter on these items and fill your skewers up with the other ideas.

Use store brands

I used generic cheese brands for these skewers and they were delicious, for less.

Buy in bulk

Warehouse clubs and bulk bins stretch your dollar when you need to make a lot of Thanksgiving or Christmas appetizers.

Love easy, last-minute Thanksgiving appetizer ideas? Don’t miss these Cranberry brie bites >>

What’s Next?

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Don’t forget to save these charcuterie skewers on Pinterest for Later!