Designated zones turn a jumbled pantry into a streamlined food and appliance storage area. Learn how to organize your pantry in zones for efficient meals and snack times. Zoning your pantry helps you see what food you have, what you need to restock, and where the groceries belong. Start with these seven categories and add your own as needed. Use baskets, glass canisters, plastic containers, and other storage tools to make your pantry work for you.
Divide your pantry into zones to keep your food organized and reduce meal preparation time. First, identify food and cooking categories that suit your lifestyle (such as weeknight dinners, portable lunches, and baking). Next, designate an area for each, with the most often-used zones easiest to get to. Finally, label each zone to keep the sections straight.
Editor's Tip
A pantry door organizer might be an easy-access place to store after-school snacks for kids.
The best method for how to organize a pantry is to anticipate food-related problems and emergencies. Stock a selection of fast-fix appetizers, napkins, toothpicks, and trays in baskets. Store them on a top shelf so they're not taking up room where everyday products should go. When guests arrive, pull a basket down, and you're ready to get the party started.
When determining how to organize a pantry, remember many gadgets are on the market. Choose ones that make sense for each pantry zone you create. Keep dry ingredients in clear, airtight containers that stack neatly so you can see when your stock is low. Place mixes, frostings, and other ingredients on a nearby shelf. You can use pantry shelf risers to stack ingredients on top of each other in an organized fashion.
Meal planners will love this tip for how to organize a pantry that's on the smaller side. After grocery shopping, put a week's worth of dinner fixings front and center in sturdy mesh bins. Attach a label and the recipe. Divide each bin by meal so everything you need will be right there when it's time to start cooking. Instead of doing this at the top of each week, you can keep the bins stocked with ingredients for your family's go-to meals like spaghetti and meatballs or chicken noodle soup.
At some point in your pantry organization plans, you'll have to make room for general food staples with long shelf life. Group food by type (veggies, fruits, soups, etc.) and arrange in rows on the shelf. Use stair-step shelves to put the back row of cans in view.
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Lunch on the Run
Another good suggestion for how to organize a pantry is to make room for non-edible products. Store bags, utensils, napkins, and lunch items together to make packing easier. Place them in a basket with handles to quickly grab everything during busy mornings. This arrangement also makes preparing weekend lunches a snap.
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Quick Breakfasts
Keep morning meal supplies in an easy-access spot to find everything you need, even in a pre-coffee haze. Breads fit in an undershelf basket, and a double-decker turntable makes the most of a corner. Save the shelf space for boxy items such as cereal, pancake mix, and instant oatmeal. Use this pantry organization idea to create a convenient coffee station for your morning brew.
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Tools and Appliances
Don't take up precious shelf space with your cookware. Instead, hang bulky or seldom-used utensils from hooks mounted on the wall or back of the door. If space allows, store specialty appliances in the pantry, too. Your most-used pots, pans, utensils and bakeware should remain in your kitchen.
Divide your pantry into zones to keep your food organized and reduce meal preparation time. First, identify food and cooking categories that suit your lifestyle (such as weeknight dinners, portable lunches, and baking). Next, designate an area for each, with the most often-used zones easiest to get to.
Divide your pantry into zones to keep your food organized and reduce meal preparation time. First, identify food and cooking categories that suit your lifestyle (such as weeknight dinners, portable lunches, and baking). Next, designate an area for each, with the most often-used zones easiest to get to.
Arrange ingredients on shelves so that taller items are in the back and shorter items are in the front. Place heavier items and glass containers on the lower shelves. 12. Note expiration dates, and place ingredients that need to be used up earlier in the front.
In professional settings, everything from spices, dried herbs, seeds, pasta, and grains are stored in deli containers. I use them in my fridge as well to store sauces, soups, mise en place and leftovers. Trust me, once you have them, you'll find multiple uses for them around your kitchen!
You lose a great deal of countertop space for prepping. Hard to keep organized and have the tendency to become over-packed. People often tend to store and overbuy on some items if they have the space.
Put things where they'll be in easy reach when you need them. Cooking supplies should be near the stove, mugs go above your coffee machine, and food prep items should be stored near a clear stretch of counter space.
Movable shelves are great for maximizing your pantry efficiency, and they can double or triple your usable space. Wire shelves make seeing every single item much easier, and they give your pantry a modern, contemporary look. Wood has a more timeless, classic, expensive look to it.
Introduction: My name is The Hon. Margery Christiansen, I am a bright, adorable, precious, inexpensive, gorgeous, comfortable, happy person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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