Ploughman's lunch
A generous board of crusty bread, cheese, ham, pickle, apple and pickled onions – no cooking required.
- Prep
- 15 mins
- Total
- 15 mins
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Cost
- Moderate
Recipe: Ploughman's lunch
Ploughman's lunch
Ingredients
- 1 crusty loaf, sliced
- 60g salted butter
- 300g mature cheddar, or a mix of British cheeses, such as Stilton and Red Leicester
- 200g thick-cut ham, or pork pie
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, halved
- 4 tbsp Branston-style pickle or chutney
- 8 pickled onions
- 2 eating apples, cut into wedges
- 8 cherry tomatoes
- 1 little gem lettuce, leaves separated
- 4 celery sticks, optional
Kitchen kit
- Large wooden board or platter Search Amazon for wooden serving board large
- Cheese knife Search Amazon for cheese knife set
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Method
-
Step 1: Prepare
Take the cheese out of the fridge 30 minutes before serving to bring out its flavour. Hard-boil the eggs (9 minutes in boiling water), cool and peel.
-
Step 2: Arrange
Arrange the bread, butter, cheese, ham, eggs, apples, tomatoes, lettuce and celery on a large board.
-
Step 3: Serve
Spoon the pickle and pickled onions into small bowls and add to the board. Let everyone help themselves.
Tips
- Squeeze a little lemon over the apple wedges to stop them browning.
- Don't leave cheese, ham and eggs out of the fridge for more than 2 hours (less on a hot day).
Storing & reheating
Return leftover cheese, ham and eggs to the fridge within 2 hours. Eat hard-boiled eggs within 2 days.
Variations
- Vegetarian: skip the ham and add a vegetarian Scotch egg; check the cheeses use vegetarian rennet.
- Add a slice of pork pie or Scotch egg for a heartier board.
Allergies: Always check the labels of the ingredients you buy for allergens — our dietary tags are a guide, not a guarantee.
From feeed.co.uk/recipes/ploughmans-lunch/ · Checked 17 October 2026
Questions people ask
Is a ploughman's lunch traditional?
Bread, cheese and onions have long been a farm worker's lunch, but the name was popularised in the 1950s and 60s to promote cheese in pubs.
What cheese is best?
A strong, crumbly mature cheddar is classic; adding a blue and a soft cheese makes it more of a feast.
Sources & inspiration
Checked 17 October 2026. Written in our own words; we checked proportions, technique and food safety against:
