Whether you are just moving in or your current arrangement does
not flow quite as smoothly as it could, organizing your kitchen can
streamline your activities and keep your kitchen looking neat and
tidy.
Steps
- Toss anything you don't use. Pass it along to
a friend or relative, add it to a neighborhood garage sale, or
donate it to charity. Be honest! When did you last use that melon
baller, meatball scoop, or cookie press? Do you even know what the
gizmos do? Do you really need two? Could a more general tool do the
job? If you get rid of it, you will not have to hunt past it for
things you do use or find a space to store it.
- Replace things that don't work. If the handle
on a pot rattles, the spout always gets clogged up, or the pan
always scorches the food, fix or replace it! If you can't afford a
replacement now, put it on a list and save your pennies, or request
one for a birthday or holiday.
-
Store frequently-used objects in
easy-to-reach locations. Notice what you use most often.
Figure out where you will use them most. Infrequently used items,
like the roasting pan that you only haul out during the holidays,
can go on high shelves or in the back of cabinets. They can even be
stored outside the kitchen in the garage, attic, basement, guest
room closet, or a box under a bed.
Make sure every item in your kitchen has earned its right to take
up your valuable space! Remember: if you use it infrequently
enough, it should go out altogether. Just because it is large or
expensive, does not mean you must keep it. If you made pasta twice
ten years ago, please pitch the pasta machine.
- Create centers of activity and store related
utensils near where they will be used. Here are some common centers
of activity, in the order that food will travel through the
kitchen:
- Storage or pantry. Consider your freezer an extension
of this area. Whether you store foods in a true pantry, a cabinet,
a closet, or someplace else entirely, don't forget to go through
periodically and clear out items that are hopelessly old or will
never be used.
- Preparation. Cutting board, knives, measuring cups and
spoons, and mixing bowls all go here.
- Cooking. The stove and oven plus the utensils that go
with them. This area should include pots and pans, pot holders,
spoons and spatulas (a utensil jar works well for these).
- Baking. If you love to bake, you might find it handy
to store your flour, sugar, baking powder, a set of measuring cups
and spoons, your favorite mixing bowl, etc. together in one
convenient spot.
- Serving. The table, plus tableware, serving dishes,
napkins, trivets, and anything else you need to sit down and eat.
Soy sauce? Salt and pepper shakers? Sugar bowl? Ask yourself
whether it would be more convenient to store your dishes and
silverware near the table or the dishwasher.
- Cleaning. The sink, dishwasher and surroundings. Soap,
gloves, dish pan, drying rack, cleansers, towels, etc.
- Waste disposal. Keep a trash can handy, plus
recycling
