A recipe for easy-to-make crudité platter with useful tips and serving suggestions as well as appetizer recipe ideas for next party or family gathering!
If you are wondering how to make a crudité tray yourself, you are at the right place. This post has answers to frequently asked questions, that help you make the best vegetable tray!
How to make crudité platter
First, choose your veggies.
Second, rinse them well under running water and peel/trim/remove seeds, if needed.
Next, cut them into strips or small pieces.
How to assemble a crudité platter
First, decide where you will put all the veggies. You can use anything: a large serving tray, plate(s) or deep baking tray. A large cheese board would also work great for a crudité board.
Second, choose small bowls for your dips and place them inside the tray/plate. You can fill them later, but make sure to leave them there. They will serve as a guide so you can see how much space you are working with.
Next, fill the gaps with veggies any way you like.
It does not really matter how you do it. You can just throw them in, stack them or arrange them nicely, in some kind of a line or row, if you like. I like to fill my trays as much as I can, because crudité platters are filled with veggies only, which means they are quite light, so your guest will probably eat more.
What are crudites usually served with?
Dip(s) of your choice (my favorite dip for crudité platter is blue cheese dip or spinach artichoke dip or buy any dip you like. Hummus is also a great choice, especially when some of your guests are vegans).
Bread (Sliced French baguette, pita bread or focaccia are delicious options) and you can also include bread dipping oil, if you like.
Expert tips
- First of all, the crudités platter is a popular French appetizer that consists of raw veggies served with some kind of dipping sauce. They make a great appetizer or snack and you can use any veggies you have on hand/like/are in season: carrots, cucumber, sweet peppers, celery, radish, tomatoes, peas, fennel, baby romaine lettuce or broccoli – anything you and your guests like.
- If you are planning on throwing a party but want to also make something for those who love meat and cheese, perhaps you can prepare a separate platter – like a cheese board.
- Veggies are healthy, but also light, so if you are serving only snacks at your party, I suggest including some other options (especially if you cater for meat-eaters). My suggestions are mini sandwiches (these can be vegetarian or not), instant pot cocktail meatballs or BLT egg sliders (crowds love both of these easy appetizer recipes) or perhaps potato leek soup shooters for vegetarians.
- Make sure to cut the veggies into bite-size pieces – it’s always better to cut them into smaller rather than larger pieces. This way there is no need for double dipping, which no one likes.
- Provide napkins, toothpicks, cocktail sticks, forks or have them ready on hand, in case some of your guests don’t want to use their hands.
- Use vegetables that are in season for best flavors!
- To keep the veggies as fresh as possible, cut them within an hour of party time.
Crudité Platter
Ingredients
- 4 sweet baby peppers
- 2 baby romaine lettuce
- 6 radishes
- 2 carrots
- 1 celery stick (large)
- 1 cucumber
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- baby sweetcorn (a jar or can)
Instructions
- Prepping veggies: Rinse all vegetables thoroughly under running water. Pat them dry. Remove seeds and membranes from peppers and cut them into strips. Remove the outer leaves from each romaine lettuce head and cut them into quarters lengthwise. Cut the greens off of radishes leaving only about ½ inch. Cut them in halves or quarters. Peel the carrots and slice them thinly. Slice the celery and cucumber into bite-size chunks. Half the cherry tomatoes. Drain the water from baby sweetcorn.
- Assembling platter: Find a large serving tray/deep baking tray or plate(s). Place a small bowl that will hold a dip of your choice in the middle or wherever you like (using more than one dip is always a great option. If you can’t fit it onto your tray, just place it near when serving the platter). Fill the tray with prepped veggies any way you like.Tip: Try to separate the same colored vegetables for a more pleasing look.
- Dip: Use any dip you like (Ranch, garlic dip, hummus – check out the post for more dip ideas and recipes).
Notes
- Please take this as a guide only. You can add more vegetables or omit some or substitute some with those you prefer more.
- I recommend buying organic vegetables or vegetables that are in season for the best flavors!
- For detailed instructions and tips on how to assemble a crudité platter as well as some more appetizer ideas, please read the full post above this recipe card.
- I recommend preparing the crudité platter as early as possible to achieve the best results before serving (1-2 hours maximum).
- To make a platter like this will take about 15-20 minutes.
Niels says
With so many different vegetables, flavors, and textures, I like to serve at least 2-3 different dips for a crudite platter depending on how many different veggies you have and how many people you are serving.