A grazing board is a beautiful, casual and chic way to eat. It’s great for entertaining because all the work is done already, and because guests can serve themselves and take as little or as much as they like.

How, then, to put a board together that will make people go “wow” as they gather around it like wild animals at a waterhole? You guessed it, there are rules.

Go big. Nobody ever won friends with a small grazing board. A large round, square or oblong tray forms the perfect canvas for food as art. Tip: A border or lip is handy; some foods roll.

For a charcuterie board, set out a soft, creamy pâté, a country-style terrine, and a spread of cured meats and salami – minimum. Add pickles, bread, fruits, olives and crackers. Consider smoked salmon or potted prawns for some light relief.

For a cheese board, try for a comte or gruyere, a tangy goat’s milk cheese, a creamy blue-veined dolcelatte blue, a nutty cheddar and a gooey triple creme or buttery double cream Fromager d’Affinois. Look for Holy Goat La Luna, Fleur du Maquis from Corsica, Le Duc Vacherin, and Will Studd’s Brillat-Savarin. And never underestimate the power of feta.

Map it out first. Place the large cheeses and meats down first, then the bread and crackers. Once you know where the big players are, slice them and fan out the slices, then fill the rest of the board with an eye for shape, pattern and colour.

Pretend you’re a seagull. Design your grazing board so that a bird flying overhead could look down on mountains (the cheeses), lakes (small bowls of dips and olives), and rivers (water biscuits and rice crackers will form the perfect meandering river when tipped straight from the pack).

Fill the gaps. Add handfuls of nuts and dried fruits, cherry tomatoes or fresh herbs (strong ones like rosemary and thyme, not soft ones like basil). Crisp crudites of baby carrots and crunchy radishes are welcome; also figs, dates or crisp nashi pears.

What to avoid: Sliced tomatoes, oily things that might leak, and fresh white bread that will go stale. Instead, go for ciabatta, dense rye bread, crispbreads, flatbreads, blinis, crackers and potato crisps.

Have back-up. Some things will disappear in minutes, others will hang around. Remain vigilant: get in there occasionally to remove olive pips, replace dirty knives, and tidy up cheeses.

Don’t show off. You can, of course, form your salumi into intricate roses as per TikTok. Or you can just arrange them overlapping in a meandering line, which is infinitely preferable.

Support small producers and their champions. Check out Penny’s Cheese Shop, Formaggi Ocello, Paesanella and Simon Johnson in Sydney, and in Melbourne, Spring Street Cheese Cellar, Supercheese, King & Godfree, Maker & Monger, and good market delis. Also Essential Ingredient stores (various locations).