Easy Friendsgiving Appetizers Everyone Can Bring
Every Friendsgiving goes the same way. Four people text “I’ll bring a dip,” someone else says “I’ll figure it out,” and by the time everyone sits down there are three bowls of spinach artichoke and no turkey.
We’ve been to enough potlucks to know how this ends. So here’s a plan for Friendsgiving appetizers that travel well, skip the oven, and give your table something besides another dip. Our answer, of course, is jerky.
Why Jerky Works at a Potluck
Think about what a Friendsgiving table is short on: something salty, chewy, and a little spicy that doesn’t need reheating, a serving dish, or a babysitter. That’s jerky. You open the bag, put it on a plate, and it’s ready.
Ours is carne seca, thin and crisp, cut and spiced by hand from top round and finished with red chile or Hatch green chile. It’s lighter and snappier than the thick, leathery kind, so it’s easy to tear into pieces and share around the table.
Build a Jerky Board
This is our favorite lazy move. Nobody has to cook, and everyone builds their own plate.
- A sharp cheddar and something soft, like brie or pepper jack
- Crackers and sliced bread
- Pickles or olives for something briny
- Apple slices or dried fruit for something sweet
- A pile of Vigil’s jerky in the middle, torn into bite-size pieces
The jerky is what pulls the board together. Salty, chile-heavy beef next to a creamy cheese is a good fight, and everybody wins.
A Few More Ways to Use It
- Jerky and cheese skewers. A piece of jerky, a cube of cheddar, a pickle slice, and a toothpick. Five minutes, and they disappear.
- On top of a dip. Chop some jerky finely and sprinkle it over a cream cheese dip or loaded nachos for texture and a little heat.
- Next to the sweet stuff. Jerky with apple slices and cinnamon cream cheese dip sounds odd until you try it.
- Straight from the bag. Honestly, still great.
Round Out the Table
Jerky shouldn’t carry everything, so give the others some lanes:
- The warm one: sausage balls or jalapeño poppers
- The cold one: cowboy caviar with tortilla chips
- The crunchy one: Chex mix, or our chile-seasoned chips if you want to stay on theme
- The board: cheese, crackers, and the jerky
- The sweet one: apples with a cream cheese dip
That’s five categories, so no two people show up with the same bowl.
Red or Green?
Chile is the one decision at a New Mexico table that gets people talking. We make our jerky with both red chile and Hatch green chile, so you can bring one, or both and let the table argue. Flavors change, so look over the shop and pick what your crowd would go for.
A Few Small Things That Help
- Bring your own serving spoon. The host never has enough.
- Label anything spicy, especially the chile jerky. Some people will take that as a challenge.
- Pack extra napkins.
- Skip anything that needs a stovetop, an oven rack, and a prayer.
Keep It Easy
Friendsgiving isn’t a cooking competition. It’s a group of people who like each other crowded around a table, eating more than they planned. The best appetizer is the one that makes it to the party and gets finished.
So bring a dip if you must, but bring a bag of Vigil’s too. It’s the one thing on the table that tastes like New Mexico, and it won’t ask anything of you.
Need an easy crowd-pleaser for your next Friendsgiving? Check out Vigil’s Beef Jerky and find a flavor worth passing around the table.
Happy Friendsgiving from all of us at Vigil’s.
