11 Cheeses You Should Avoid Adding To Your Charcuterie Board

There is a lot to consider when planning the perfect charcuterie board. From deciding which types of meat and condiments to serve and selecting a wine to match, every little detail can make a difference in the overall experience. Undoubtedly, one of the crucial elements of making a charcuterie platter selecting which types of cheese to serve. There are more than enough options to complement the rest of your platter. 

Although most cheeses are welcomed on a well-made charcuterie board, there are a few that could throw the board off balance and ruin the overall eating experience. Some cheeses weren't meant to sit center-stage at this party due to their pungency, spiciness, or mushiness. Whether you are planning a charcuterie board for a dinner party or a cozy night in, be sure to avoid these cheeses to ensure that your other ingredients can shine and that your diners can leave happy. 

While good old American cheese is great for melting over a burger or making an oozy grilled cheese with, it shouldn't be making an appearance on your charcuterie board. For starters, it's not even technically a cheese. Instead, it's categorized by the Food and Drug Administration as a "processed cheesed food" — ooh, tempting! It does contain some real cheese, but it is mixed with whey and protein from milk. It doesn't contain a high enough percentage of curds to qualify as cheese.

The biggest reason, however, that you shouldn't add American cheese to your charcuterie board is because of its flavor and texture. There are so many wonderful cheese options for your board, and American cheese will pale in comparison to them all. Its bland flavor and plasticky consistency will not add anything to the platter at all, and it's not a particularly good match for the cured meats either.

A mild cheese, such as havarti, will offer a creamy experience with a bit more bite than overly-processed American cheese. Alternatively, you could select a young Gouda, as it's mild enough to fulfill the same niche. 

Ricotta is a brilliantly creamy soft cheese that works perfectly as a stuffing for pasta or in a dessert — but add it to your charcuterie board and you're going to have problems. One of the criteria for a good charcuterie cheese is that it needs to be easy to cut and transfer onto a plate, and ricotta cheese fails here. If you try to cut a neat slice of ricotta, it will collapse down into a mushy mess, ruining not just the presentation of the cheese itself, but also any ingredients in its proximity.

A better option would be a luxurious burrata, which will provide the same creamy texture but stand up much better to a knife. Burrata is a version of mozzarella that has a much softer center, known as stracciatella. However, if you can't get a hold of it, any good quality mozzarella will work.

Adding a cheese with a bit of spice to your charcuterie board is a great idea, but you might want to be quite cautious with the heat, especially if you are serving it to guests that may not be able to handle too much of it. An example of a cheese that will be beyond most people's spice threshold is Carolina Reaper cheese. It's infused with one of the hottest chiles in the world, the Carolina Reaper, which has a Scoville heat rating of around 2.2 million units. The creamy element from the cheese is unlikely to be enough to balance the intense heat — at least for most people. If you love hot peppers, try some of this cheese as a personal challenge, but keep it off the charcuterie board.

Opt instead for something like habanero Jack. It still enough of an intriguing kick to keep all diners happy, but it won't have them sweating and unable to enjoy the rest of the board. No matter how hot the chiles  are, be sure to label the cheese as "spicy" so that everyone who is helping themselves to your charcuterie board is aware of the risks!

A good charcuterie board cheese can be sliced easily with a specialty cheese knife, if you have one, or a regular knife. The last thing you want is for pieces to break off and fly across the table whenever someone attempts to help themselves to slice. For this reason, you will definitely not want to add chhurpi to your board.

Chhurpi is made from yak's milk and is a delicacy in southern Asia. It is considered to be the world's hardest cheese, and is enjoyed as a snack in a similar way to gum; the longer you chew at it, the more it softens in texture. Including a particularly hard cheese on your charcuterie board is not a good idea, as the effort needed to cut through it will take away from the enjoyment of eating it.

If you are looking for a hard cheese to add to your charcuterie platter, try Pecorino Romano. It is firm enough to contrast any soft or creamy cheese you serve, but can be cut through fairly easily with a sharp knife. Its tangy flavor will match the rest of the board well, but its texture is not so hard that it's difficult to eat. The Italian cheese pairs beautifully with olives, sun-dried tomatoes, and, of course, Parma ham.

Cheddar cheese is a popular cheese variety in the U.S., second only to the pizza-topping superstar mozzarella. All cheddar isn't equal, however, and the version you put in your grilled cheese sandwich may not be the best option for your charcuterie platter.

Mild cheddar may taste great when it's oozing out of a toasted sandwich, but if you put a wedge of it alongside your beautiful cured meats, you are going to leave people disappointed. It doesn't have enough flavor complexity to stand out against the robust meats and other cheeses on the board — meaning it will fall a bit flat in terms of flavor. This doesn't mean, however, that cheddar has to be off the menu. A sharp cheddar, which has been aged for much longer than its mild counterpart, is a very different prospect. It's pungent and more crumbly in texture, so it will provide a much needed umami flavor to complement salami and cured ham.

Another option would be a smoked Cheddar, such as an applewood-smoked variety. The smoking adds an extra dimension while still being familiar enough for everyone to enjoy.

Cream cheese is a luxurious option that is a big hit with most people and can make a good addition to your charcuterie platter — as long as it is firm enough to make the journey from board to plate. Issues can arise, however, if you add a flavor of cream cheese that could clash with other ingredients on your platter, especially if your guests aren't expecting it.

There are so many varieties of flavored cream cheeses you can buy now, and though most of them are delicious on a cracker, pairing them with salami and prosciutto won't work in every case. While smoked salmon cream cheese is fantastic on a toasted bagel or alongside some prawns, there is going to be a clash of flavors if it ends up on a plate with charcuterie meat. Similarly, the wild berry flavor cream cheese would make for a tantalizing cheesecake filling, but isn't going to add much to the overall umami flavor of your platter.

If you really want to add a flavored cream cheese to your charcuterie board, opt for a safer flavor, such as garlic and herb or black pepper. These varieties have enough punch to be interesting on the palate without creating a mismatch with the rest of the board.

When choosing cheeses for your charcuterie board, there is often one big question: Blue cheese or no blue cheese? This is a controversial one. For lovers of blue cheese, the answer is a definite yes, as the pungent umami flavor pairs perfectly with the rich cured meats and other ingredients on the platter. For those who don't enjoy blue cheese, however, the smell alone could be overpowering enough to ruin the overall experience.

With this in mind, it is best to avoid particularly strong blue cheeses, such as Cabrales Blue, a cave-aged cheese from the Spanish mountains. The intense flavor of this blue cheese makes it a popular choice amongst those who love their cheeses as stinky as possible, but it will not make a subtle addition to your platter. No matter how much chutney or sweet fresh fruit you add to the plate, it will not be able to balance the aggressive, spicy notes of Cabrales Blue.

Instead, opt for a creamy blue, such as Gorgonzola Dolce. It will keep the blue cheese lovers happy without alienating everyone else. The mildly-tangy flavor will complement the meats and fruits rather than overpower them.

If you are wanting to impress your guests with your charcuterie platter, you may be consider buying truffle-flavored cheese. Truffle-flavored everything has become very popular, but the issue is that these products are infused with truffle oil, rather than the real thing. Truffle oil can, in some cases, be infused with real truffles, but this would make it prohibitively expensive, so most truffle oils are made with a synthetic truffle flavoring, such as 2,4-dithiapentane, instead.

The issue with synthetic truffle oil is that it doesn't have the same delicious flavor as real truffles — in fact, some chefs detest it. When a dish on "Masterchef" was topped with the offending oil, chef Gordon Ramsay described it as "one of the most pungent, ridiculous ingredients ever known to chef." By buying a cheese that contains truffle oil, you run the risk that, rather than impressing your dinner companions, you will put them off with the rather overpowering flavor that many truffle-infused cheeses impart.

While cheese with real truffles would be a much better option, the cost means that it will not be a viable alternative for your charcuterie board. Since truffles add a rich umami element to the cheese, try adding options that have a super-savory flavor. Parmigiano Reggiano may be a classic option for topping pasta, but it also works well on a charcuterie platter. Its salty, slightly nutty flavor will pair well with everything else. Make sure you provide a sharp knife to cut through it cleanly, and enjoy the umami richness it brings without synthetic truffle oil in sight.

When it comes to cheese, if you think the stinkier the better, then chances are you would consider adding a washed rind cheese to your charcuterie board. If you are sharing the platter with others, however, you may want to reconsider. If you've ever kept an opened wedge of washed rind cheese in the refrigerator, you will have experienced the scent that greets you as you open the door — is that really a smell you want to inflict upon your dinner companions?

Washed rind cheeses have been washed in brine then left in an environment that encourages certain bacteria to grow, which creates a distinctive coating on the outside and a less-than-subtle smell. While this can bring joy to many cheese aficionados, it is not a suitable companion to the delicate meats, veggies, and pickles that make up the rest of your board. Not to mention the fact that any other cheese on the platter will be completely bulldozed by the intense flavor of the washed rind cheese. 

If you love washed rind cheeses but want something a little more approachable, try including brie instead. It has a bloomy rind with enough of a flavor punch to be interesting, but without the stench that accompanies the washed rind varieties. Brie is also recognizable enough that everyone will know what to expect and they can avoid it if they are not a fan. Try adding some fresh berries or fruity chutney to match the brie, or pair it with the classic option of cranberry sauce.

Adding a goat or sheep milk cheese to your charcuterie board is an option, as it may impress your dinner companions. Compared to cow's milk, these cheeses have earthier flavors that can be more intense, though many also have a subtle sweetness that will complement the rest of your board. With so many goat or sheep cheeses to choose from, there are many options that will sit nicely on your platter and complement the ingredients around them, but Valdeón is not one of them.

The bold spicy flavor of Valdeón makes it a little too strong for a charcuterie board where there will be lots of other ingredients competing for attention. Though you may find it delicious by itself on a cracker, put it on your charcuterie platter and it will knock the flavor socks off of everything around it. Instead of a mellow flavor that brings the plate together, you and your guests will be left with the lingering taste of the strong blue cheese with each mouthful.

For a more subtle sheep milk cheese to your board, opt for Manchego. The flavor is intense enough to set it apart from milder cow's milk cheese, but it shouldn't overpower the rest of the platter. It pairs well with fruits and pickled vegetables, and works especially well with salty Serrano ham.

When you are planning your charcuterie board and making decisions on what to put on it, you will also have to give some thought to when and how you will serve it to your guests. Since the board may be filled with perishable produce, you may want to keep all the ingredients in the fridge until the last minute before serving — or better yet, compose your platter and then refrigerate the whole thing to keep it fresh. Serving your cheese chilled, though, is definitely not the best option.

Chilled cheese actually tastes different than room temperature cheese. The warmer it is, the better the flavor will be. Most cheeses contain a large percentage of fat — which is one of the reasons it is so delicious. At lower temperatures, the fat molecules shrink, meaning that its flavor isn't as prominent. As the cheese warms, however, the fat will loosen up again and the taste of the cheese will improve. Room temperature cheese is also creamier, since it will soften slightly. 

Preparing your charcuterie board is about balancing freshness with optimum flavor and texture. Take your cheese out of the fridge around an hour before you want to eat it, and cover it loosely with plastic wrap. Then, keep it out of sight to prevent any temptation for premature taste tests.