Decluttering the fridge

If your fridge looks like a bomb went off inside it, or it's stuffed to the gills and you can't find anything, or you're afraid to open it because the science experiments have created their own civilization and reached the gunpowder stage... read on.

1. Turn the fridge off, pull out everything, and start the fridge defrosting while you work. You can set pans of hot water inside to speed up melting. If the cleaning process will take a while, put frozen and highly perishable foods in a cooler or ice chest.


2. Throw away the science experiments, anything with fur that shouldn't have it, and anything that’s gone bad.


3. Look at all the leftovers. Decide: will you eat them in the next 2 days? Can they be frozen to eat later? No? Into the garbage or compost they go.


4. Check expiry dates. Throw out anything which is unreasonably beyond it’s date (it seems a shame to waste something which expired yesterday – but be sure you’ll eat it SOON!).


5. Consider how you use the space inside your fridge: could it be better organized? Can shelves be moved to use the space better? Plan for better space use while it’s empty.


6. Take out your baking soda container if it’s been there longer than a few months, and use it to clean out the sink drains.


7. Clean the fridge.


8. Add new baking soda


9. Replace everything you’re keeping, using your new space plan.


10. Admire the lovely clean spacious fridge.

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Where to keep your kitchen spices

Spices and dried herbs need to be stored cool, dark and dry to keep their best flavor, especially if you don't use them up very quickly. An open shelf over the range doesn't meet these needs at all, even though you often see it in magazine pictures. Maybe the people in those kitchens use up their matched sets of herbs really fast - or maybe they don't use them at all and the bottles never get opened!

So, what to do in real kitchens?

First, where do you use your herbs and spices? I use mine in more than one place - at the range, at the prep area, and when I'm baking. So ideally I'd want storage at all those places. Not necessarily duplicating everything in each place, but making sure that the ones I use in each place are there to use.

Next, how much do you use them? If you're a frequent user and you use them up fast, then having the most-used jars out and readily to hand makes sense, and you'll use them up quickly enough that they won't lose their potency. Otherwise, you'll want to have them put away but easy to reach when you need them. Some of the best choices for achieving this are:

A drawer - you can store the jars upright if you label the tops, or use sloping supports that tip them back so you can read the labels on the fronts.

A spice rack inside a cabinet door beside the range keeps them dark and dry though possibly a bit warm. Two out of three ain't bad.

A narrow pantry-style pullout can fit in a small space that would otherwise be wasted, and provides a lot of storage for different sized jars and bottles. Usually there will be space for oils and vinegars too, which is a bonus.

Got other ideas? Tell us how you store herbs and spices in your own kitchen!