A clean, organized refrigerator is one of life’s simple pleasures. It’s aesthetically pleasing, easy to navigate, and prevents excess waste. Whether you live alone or have a whole house, you open your refrigerator daily. Opening the refrigerator door to a clean, streamlined space will make meal planning, cooking, and grabbing a quick snack feel effortless. So if you’re looking for fridge cleaning and organization tips, read on for ways to make it look like a professional organizer came to visit your kitchen.
Remove every item
Before you can start organizing the contents of your refrigerator, remove every single item so you can deep clean the fridge, take inventory of what you have, throw out expired items, and create an organizational strategy. To create a clean slate, deep clean the refrigerator, including removing every drawer, door and tray. Next, throw out old food, expired condiments and items you won’t use anymore.
Use organizers
Clear refrigerator organizers can help you quickly group items together while being able to see them. Categorizing these items will make them easy to access and give every item its space. Separating fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses, condiments, etc., will make accessing these items more manageable and prevent them from getting lost in the back of the fridge. Also, keeping items in designated containers will help to contain spills and messes, making it easier to keep the refrigerator clean.
Prep the food
As you plan how you will organize your food, take some time to prepare your produce. Washing, cutting and storing your fruits and vegetables before putting them in the refrigerator will help reduce food waste. It’s easier to access already prepared food, so you may be more inclined to eat it before it expires.
Adjust the shelves
Refrigerator shelves can be adjusted, so play around with the shelf heights until you find a layout that works best for your food storage needs. Just because the shelves were a particular way when you purchased the refrigerators doesn’t mean they need to stay at those same heights.
Create a snack section
Assigning a drawer or container to easy-to-access snacks can make it easier for family members to access a ready-to-eat snack conveniently. Likewise, keeping a refrigerator bin filled with snacks will help make everyone be more self-sufficient and give access to healthier snack options.
Used uniform food storage containers
Storing your leftovers in matching food containers will keep your fridge looking clean, organized and easier to identify the contents of the container. In addition, a streamlined set of containers will eliminate unsightly takeout and mismatched containers in favor of a matching set.
Decant when possible
The original packaging for store-bought items can be bulky, unsightly and make the refrigerator feel more cluttered. Removing items from the original packaging can make the fridge more orderly. For example, if snacks are individually wrapped, remove them from the outer packaging. Pouring juice, milk and coffee creamer into sleek glass containers will create more visual space and make pouring these beverages feel more special.
