How to Organize Your Pantry
You’ve decided that your pantry needs an overhaul. Great! If you’re not sure how to organize your pantry, continue reading for easy implementable tips.
Having an organized pantry helps you keep your food costs down because you’re not overbuying things you already have, but it can also help you make healthier choices. However, before you get to the actual organizing, consider how you store and organize your food.
Your pantry organizers should be…
Functional: Consider what you will store in the containers and who will use them. If your whole family can get with the program, your pantry will remain organized.
Stacking is EVERYTHING: Every inch of real estate in a pantry counts. So when choosing food storage containers, consider how they’ll stack together.
Transparent: While it may be tempting to purchase terrific and modern canisters in cool colors or materials, the best bins are transparent. The clear sides allow you to view the interiors, which helps you keep track of your stock. Clear containers also make mixing and matching, or adding as your needs change easy, and still maintain a uniform appearance.
Before you begin to organize, start with a clean and empty pantry
Empty your entire pantry, toss out expired food, and if there is any unopened food you’re not likely to eat, consider donating it to your local food pantry. As you’re emptying your pantry, sort your foodstuffs by type (canned goods, snack foods, condiments, crackers, cereals, etc.) Next, clean your pantry. Wipe down shelves and your walls. Ensure that the shelves are secure and that nothing needs repair or replacement.
Remember when you sorted your food by type? Now it’s time to categorize your food.
As you organize your pantry items, place similar items together. How you organize your pantry shelves is important because it should be organized in a way that is easy to maintain, and that meets your needs. A Lazy Susan can be super helpful to keep things like oils and condiments together or be used to access your most frequently used items easily.
For a clutter-free pantry, remove any packaging. Then, place dry ingredients in clear, food-safe containers—place chips in square open front canisters for easy organization.
Now would be an excellent time to label your containers if this is something you wish to do. Labeled containers help family members and younger kids understand where things go.
If your pantry is small, use up every bit of space. Things like over-the-door hangers provide more storage for things like canned goods. Utilizing wall space to help keep things like aprons, reusable grocery bags, and brooms only adds to the function of your pantry.
If small children are a part of your family, having a kid-friendly basket where they can grab snacks for themselves is helpful for busy moments and teaches independence and how to make healthy food choices because you’ll get to choose what goes into the basket.
Once your pantry is organized, you may want to keep an inventory list to know what needs purchasing. Also, keep it up. Biweekly go back in and straighten up the most used items that tend to get untidy. Wipe down shelves and any frequently touched canisters to ensure your pantry is a well-used and functional part of your home space.
