How to Organize a Pantry

Part of having a well-organized and clean kitchen is having a pantry that is inviting, clean and efficient. When you enter, you should be able to quickly locate foods, see what needs to be replenished, and also have space for additions if you buy extras. A clean pantry can help you reduce clutter on your kitchen shelves and counters and can add to the overall inviting feel of your home. There are few things worse than having guests open a door to chaos, untidiness and mess. 

Appearances aren’t the only reasons to keep your pantry clean and organized. Here are a few you may not have thought of:

• Organized pantries can help you eat healthier.
  If you remove the junk food from your pantry (or at least store it on the highest shelf, out of sight) you’re less likely to reach for it absentmindedly. The same goes for your children – you can place healthy snacks within their reach by assigning a shelf just for them.
  
  
• Good storage systems help you spend less. Using clear storage containers with air-tight lids not only keeps your food fresh, longer, but it also helps you see when you need to restock. It also looks much more tidy than keeping food in boxes and bags that don’t close well and droop off the shelves in an unorganized way. 
  
  
• Organized pantries cut down on cooking time. Have you ever spent more time looking for an ingredient than you planned? A great pantry system helps you quickly identify foods you need and cuts your cooking time down, leaving you more time to enjoy your creation. 

So how do you organize your pantry without getting overwhelmed? Take it step by step! Plan out a day that you don’t have any other pressing things to attend to, turn on some music, and get to work. It also helps you have friends or family lend you a hand, if they are available. Here is your step-by-step action plan to finally tackle that pantry:

• Take a before and after photo. Before you get started, snap a picture of that messy pantry. You don’t have to post it on social media, but you can keep it for yourself so you remember what your pantry looked like before you put in all the hard work. 
  
  
• Remove every item from the pantry. Yes, every item. It helps to place items in groups like this:
  
  

1. Healthy snacks (nuts, granola, pretzels)
2. Kids favorites (items they like to grab throughout the day)
3. Junk foods (candy, cookies, chips)
4. Spices and other ingredients
5. Pastas
6. Fruits
7. Paper items (plates, paper towels, etc)
8. Miscellaneous items
   
   

• Throw away any expired foods. 
  
  

• Clean out the empty pantry. This means dusting, sweeping and mopping. If necessary, this is a great time to put up more shelves or redo your entire shelving system so you have more storage. 
  
  

• Pull out your containers. If you didn’t already have containers before this process started, buy some. You can go to the dollar store, a container store, a hardware store, or any other place that carries containers for your kitchen. It’s helpful to have a wide variety of shapes and sizes, although they should match or at least look good displayed together. Start to place these containers with the groups of food where they will best fit. For example, choose a larger container to hold chips and a smaller container to hold things like nuts or small candies. 
  
  
• Place the foods in the containers and discard boxes/bags. After you pour the foods into the containers, you can place them on the shelves keeping your system in mind (junk foods near the top and out of reach, kid snacks at the bottom or at eye level for your children, healthy snacks within easy reach). Paper towels and other items can also go on top shelves or in back corners, out of the way. 

When you are finished, stand back and admire your work. Take that “after” photo you’ve been waiting to take, and compare it to the one before. Great job! Now you can enjoy your pantry.