Kitchen Spring Cleaning

Everyone wants an organized kitchen.  But one of the greatest obstacles to keeping that space organized is the sheer volume of stuff there.  Between the appliances, large and small, dishes and glassware, and all the foodstuff, there’s a lot to maintain.  Get a jump on your kitchen spring cleaning by focusing on these critical areas.  Here’s how to get started.

• Pare down kitchen gadgets. I’m sure the lemon zester seemed really critical when you bought it but well, when was the last time you actually “zested”?  Let go of the gadgets that you’re not using consistently.  Store infrequently used items – think turkey baster and gravy strainer – in alternate space.
• Purge the utensil drawer. There’s a reason that drawer is overflowing.  Cake cutters, wine openers, and all manner of other small utensils accumulate seemingly overnight.  Clean out the drawer and keep ONE of each item.  Bonus points if you eliminate a category altogether.
• Just say no to more coffee mugs and water bottles. “No.” is a complete sentence. You don’t have to take that giveaway mug or water bottle.  Review what you already have and clean out your least-used items.  We all have favorites we use all the time; let the rest go.  Donate anything that’s in good condition and trash or recycle anything else.
• Streamline your food storage options. I use one brand of plastic storage containers because they are both stackable and interlock as well.  Ditto with glass storage.  Pick a system, any system, and get rid of anything in poor condition or without a mate.  Random tops and bottoms make clean up more work and your storage cluttered and disorganized.
• Reconfigure your pots and pans. “Nesting” pots and pans maximizes space in a smaller kitchen.  Again, let go of items in poor condition – scratched enamel, worn out coating, etc.  Keep the ones you use on a daily and weekly basis front and center and relegate the seldom-used – hello, lobster pot! – to another storage area.  To make my life easier, I leave a small saucepan and small sautee pan right on my stovetop because I use them EVERY DAY.  It’s not about the aesthetic, it’s about the ease of use.

Check out the next article on organizing your pantry and food items…