How to declutter your pantry in three easy steps … kitchen helper
Spring is in the air and with that, the feeling of a fresh start, the need to open all the windows to clear out the still air of winter from our homes. Try a mini-spring clean of your pantry to satisfy that need with these three quick-fixes.
Is your pantry a conglomeration of half-used boxes of duplicates, past use-by date ingredients and a general sense of disorganisation? Does the idea of cleaning it out cause dread, so that you just never get it done? There’s no need to put yourself through a complete ground-zero or Marie Condo-type declutter. Break down your plan of attack as follows and you can have a well-organised pantry in quick time.
1. Throw out past use-by products
This includes out of date rice, nuts, flours, and pasta which can go stale or rancid even if they look ok. This will immediately free up space in your pantry, and you will begin to see the forest for the trees.
2. Consolidate duplicate packets
You night have two or even three open packets of the one ingredient taking up shelf space. These were probably bought when you were panic-shopping for an event and couldn’t remember if you had, for example, custard powder in the panty, so you bought a packet - only to find you had one in the pantry already. Decant these into one container and you have saved 50% of the space these two took up previously.
3. Organise by type
Once you have freed up your space it will be easier to organise your pantry. Everything should have its designated spot so that it can be easily returned to that spot and your pantry can be more easily maintained. It will also be easier to check quickly if you have two packets of custard powder!
Organise by type of cooking or meal. For example, have a shelf or part of a shelf for breakfast things (jams, spreads, cereals). Have a shelf for baking products (flours, sugars, baking powder and vanilla essence). Then a shelf for spices (even these can have cuisine subsets if you are really keen – Italian, Moroccan, Indian and so on). You’ll need a shelf for pastas, dried legumes, and other savoury things that go together to create certain types of often-cooked meals, such as curries or pasta sauces. Think about the things you regularly cook and keep these all within easiest reach.
If your declutter shows that you are about to run out of self-raising flour, or your pasta levels are low, do a restock so that you have all your regular things to hand and there’s less chance of panic-shopping when you’re under pressure. Read on here for our guide on which pantry staples to keep on hand to cook dinner without a dash the shops.
