Catering Tray
intro
A colorful, shareable deli-style catering tray loaded with cured meats, cheeses, fresh produce, and crisp dippers, perfect for feeding groups with minimal cooking required.
Ingredients
Steps
Prep the catering tray
Take a 45cm x 30cm reusable or disposable aluminum catering tray, line the base with food-grade parchment paper cut to exact fit, and set three 120ml ramekins evenly spaced down the tray’s center, leaving 5cm of open space between each ramekin. This prep step takes 4 minutes at room temperature, no heat required.
Fill serving ramekins
Scoop 250g roasted garlic hummus into the leftmost ramekin, smoothing the top with a small spoon and drizzling 5ml of extra-virgin olive oil over the surface for a polished look. Pour 120ml honey mustard into the middle ramekin, and add 200g mixed pitted olives to the rightmost ramekin. This step takes 3 minutes.
Crisp salami slices
Heat a medium non-stick skillet over medium heat (175°C / 350°F). Working in batches of 6 slices to avoid overcrowding, cook 350g Genoa salami for 45 seconds per side until edges curl and turn deep golden brown. Transfer cooked salami to a paper-towel lined plate to cool and drain for 5 minutes. This cooking step takes 10 minutes total, including batch cook time and cooling.
Arrange meat selections
Fold 450g sliced smoked deli turkey into loose, ruffled 3-slice stacks, and arrange the stacks in two neat, evenly spaced rows between the left hummus ramekin and middle honey mustard ramekin. Tuck the cooled crisp salami slices into loose, easy-to-grab piles between the middle honey mustard ramekin and right olive ramekin, leaving 2cm of open space between meat piles and ramekins to prevent crowding. This step takes 5 minutes.
Add cheeses and produce
Fan 300g sliced sharp cheddar and 250g sliced provolone in alternating, overlapping rows along the left long edge of the tray. Arrange 400g small seedless red grape clusters, 250g whole cherry tomatoes, and cucumber cut into 1cm-thick rounds along the right long edge of the tray, tucking 15g fresh dill sprigs between produce piles for a fresh green garnish. This step takes 7 minutes.
Add dippers and chill
Fill all remaining empty gaps on the tray with 300g whole-grain crackers and 200g mini pretzel twists, standing crackers upright where possible to make them easy for guests to grab. Loosely cover the entire tray with food-safe plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator at 4°C (39°F) for 6 minutes to set before serving. This final step takes 6 minutes.
Tips
2.You can prep and arrange meats, cheeses, dips, and produce up to 12 hours in advance (stored covered in the fridge), but add crackers and pretzels no earlier than 30 minutes before serving to keep them crisp.
3.Reserve a small 10cm section of the tray for gluten-free rice crackers if serving guests with dietary restrictions, and add small handwritten labels next to dips to note common allergens like dairy, sesame, and mustard.
OMG I made this for my kid’s soccer team potluck last weekend and every single bite was gone before halftime! I swapped the spicy mustard for honey mustard since half the kids are picky, and it was still SO good. My kids loved it too, even the ones who turn their nose up at any lunch meat that isn’t the pre-packaged turkey slices they eat for school lunches. Total lifesaver when I forgot I signed up to bring something, only took me 30 minutes to throw together even with running to the deli last minute.
Super easy to put together for my fantasy football draft party, only knock is I wish it had a little note about how much meat/cheese per person to buy. I definitely overbought and had enough leftovers for lunch all week, which isn’t even a bad problem to have tbh. The pickled veggie addition was a game changer, no sad deli tray here!
Made this for my book club meetup and everyone was asking for the recipe! I added a little bowl of olive tapenade on the side per my friend’s suggestion and it paired perfectly. Would 10/10 make again for my next girls’ night.
This was perfect for our post-hike cabin get together with friends! We set it out on the porch table and people grazed on it for hours after we got off the trail. No cooking required basically, which is exactly what you want when you’re tired after 6 miles uphill.
Throwing a pool party today and just finished assembling this tray! It looks so fancy I almost don’t want to put it out for people to dig into, almost. Grabbed boar’s head meats and cheeses from the grocery store deli, added some marinated olives and pretzel crisps for dippers, already know it’s gonna be a hit.
This was solid, but I found the 35 minute timeline a little ambitious? It took me almost an hour to lay everything out nicely and fold the meats like the photos show. Tasted great, just give yourself extra time if you’re a perfectionist about presentation like me!
Game changer for holiday parties! I made this for our office Christmas party (yes I know that was two weeks ago, I’m late leaving reviews) and my boss asked if I’d cater our next team event. Little does he know it was the easiest thing I’ve ever made for a work function. 10/10, no notes.
Made this for my son’s high school graduation party and it went over really well! The only change I made was adding some pimento cheese spread because you can’t have a Southern gathering without pimento cheese, duh. Wish I’d gotten a photo of the tray before it was demolished, it looked so good!
Just finished putting this together for our neighborhood block party! The assembly instructions were super straightforward, even for someone like me who burns toast half the time. Added some fresh fruit cups on the side to balance out all the savory snacks, can’t wait to see what the neighbors think.
I’ve been overcomplicating party food for YEARS. Why was I spending hours making fancy appetizers when I can throw together this deli tray that everyone likes way more? Had 8 people over for game night last night and everyone commented on how good the spread was, zero leftovers.
Wait I never thought to use a deli tray layout for weekly meal prep? I made a big version of this on Sunday, portioned out the meat, cheese, crackers and pickles into individual containers, and had grab-and-go lunches for the whole work week. Saved me so much money on takeout!
Taste was fine, but if you’re making this in a hot climate don’t leave it out for more than an hour! I set mine out for a backyard BBQ and the cheese got all sweaty and the lunch meat got warm faster than I expected, kind of a bummer. Probably should have thought of that myself, but a heads up in the recipe would have been nice.
Made this for a casual backyard baby shower we hosted for my sister, and even her super picky mother-in-law said it was the best party food she’d had in ages! I added some little crostini toasts, a variety of mustards, and those tiny little pickles that everyone goes crazy for, it was perfect. So easy even with a million other shower to-dos to check off the list.
Volunteered to bring snacks for my daughter’s high school marching band competition, and this tray fed 20 hungry teenagers without breaking the bank! I bought the bulk packs of meat and cheese from Costco, added some giant bags of pretzels and cracker packs, and it was way cheaper than ordering a pre-made tray from the deli. 100% will be making this for every event from now on.