Five of the Best Kept Secrets for Organizing Your Kitchen Pantry

There are few spaces in the home that are more chaotic than the kitchen pantry. Your family goes to get something, and they can't seem to find it because of the clutter and disorganization. But there are ways to organize your kitchen pantry so that finding things is much easier.

To organize your kitchen pantry, you may need to get a little creative. Plastic and glass containers, baskets or bins, using available space, and swivel storage allow for you to keep items contained. You can also use things that you already have around the house to maintain order in your cabinets.

In this article, you will learn different ways to create order out of chaos in your kitchen pantry.

Plastic containers are a great way to organize some of your staple pantry items. Cereal, pasta, flour, and sugar can be stored in containers. This keeps moisture and pests out while keeping the contents fresh. Clear containers allow you to see what you have and how much at a quick glance. Labels help you stay organized as to which plastic boxes are for what items when you run out.

While you might think plastic containers are only for cereals and baking ingredients, they are not. Use larger rectangular boxes to store chips, crackers, and even cookies. You can use smaller containers for rice and oats. To save space, smaller containers can easily stack on top of each other.

HGTV explains that canning jars are not just for homemade jams and jellies. In fact, they work for storing other pantry essentials.Like small plastic containers, these jars can store different dried goods such as sugar, flour, and rice. Some canning jars have a twist top. Others have a hinged design that allows them to seal tighter and keep air out. Either works well; it is a matter of availability and personal preference.

With plastic containers, you can see the contents. However, you'll still want to label them with the content and the date stored, and the expiration date. Some like to make fancy labels, but an alternative is to use chalkboard stickers that will allow you to erase the writing instead of having to remove the tag when you change contents. You can also use washi tape to write on as a label.



You may think that moving food like cereal, flour, and rice into a canister is all about the aesthetics. However, there is a more compelling reason behind doing so, as further detailed by the experts at The Organized Home. By not transferring dry goods into containers, you could be opening yourself up to an infestation of bugs and pests.

Baskets and bins are great for organizing snacks and pantry items. You can label the bins with different categories, based on what items are in your pantry. If you have kids, make each a basket with their favorite snacks. You can also group snacks into categories like fruits, salty snacks, chips, or granola bars.

You can also get storage designed for canned food items. Using one of these corrals will help keep your cans organized and in place. Cans can get pushed around and misplaced behind other items. Instead of storing them upright, the corral holds them vertically. Each time you remove a can from its slot, the next one rolls forward. The unique design keeps the cans from rolling onto the floor.



Larger baskets and bins can be placed on the floor. They hold larger items that you usually store on the floor due to their size. These larger bins help keep your area neat and tidy, even though there is still floor storage.

The back of the pantry door is a great place to find additional storage space. There are several options when it comes to utilizing the door space. Wire racks can give you a place to store canned food and smaller containers.

An over-the-door shoe rack makes an excellent spice rack. Spices often get lost in the back of a cluttered pantry. With this option, you can keep your spices in one place. The see-through pouches allow you to easily see what herbs you have.



If you have all of your food organized on your shelves, you can still use the back of your pantry doors for storage. The use of command hooks gives you room to hang your oven mitts, potholders, and aprons.

The back of the door may not be the only extra space in your pantry. HouseBeautiful.com notes that wall space can give you extra room to store food items. Wire Racks and shelving can hold cans or containers, freeing up space. The wall is also an excellent place to store items such as foil, plastic wrap, and storage baggies.

To use all available space, you must stack your kitchen pantry shelves. However, that is what makes it challenging to find items and ingredients when you need them. It's time to learn to love swivel storage that allows you to still stack your shelves but still easily access the items towards the back of your cabinets. Lazy Susans are an excellent swivel storage option. You can place spices and other seasonings on the turntable and then spin to access the items you want.



Swivel storage is not the only organizational unit to help you reach items towards the back. Pop in drawers are also handy. They attach to the current shelving and turn it into a drawer for pull out storage. You can also find plastic drawers for smaller items such as granola bars or individual snack packs.

Even if you don't have hundreds of dollars to spend on new containers and baskets, you can still organize your kitchen pantry by upcycling things you already own. Upcycling not only saves you a little money, but it is also good for the environment.

• Boxes work well as a replacement for baskets. Cover them with some contact paper to add some style. Small boxes work great to organize snacks and smaller items that get lost. Bigger boxes are ideal for larger items usually stored on the floor. 
• Magazine Holders store produce such as garlic, onions, or potatoes. 
• Shower Caddies: Use a command hook on your pantry wall or door to hang it and make a produce shelf out of it. 
• Disinfectant Wipe Containers: Use to store plastic shopping bags. Thoroughly wash the containers before use. Roll the shopping bags, overlapping the end of each bag. Place inside the container and replace the lid. Pull the end of the center bag through the opening to dispense the shopping bags.

Organizing your kitchen pantry is like arranging the rest of your home; it's an ongoing process that you will never be fully finished with. As your food storage changes, you'll have to reorganize items to better suit your needs. While it's a daily or weekly routine, using containers, baskets, and back of the door storage will make the process less time consuming than before.