Have you taken a good look in your refrigerator, lately? Your mother-in-law’s Meatloaf Surprise started living up to it’s name two weeks ago. Month-old leftovers are now candidates for Junior’s next science project.
Don’t let your food decay behind the Brita pitcher! Follow these tips to save you time, space, and wasted food:
Purge
Grab your garbage can, position it next to your refrigerator and purge it of all spoiled food. Look for tin foil sculptures and anything that wasn’t green BEFORE you bought it. Keep repeating to yourself, ‘When in doubt, throw it out.’
Make it shine!
Use some elbow grease and give those shelves, drawers, and crisper a good cleaning. It’s not easy to organize jars and containers if they’re sticking to the shelf... Clean one shelf at a time, starting with the top one. All crumbs, liquid, and unidentifiable objects that don’t make it into your paper towel will land on the shelf below, which you will be cleaning next. Once you’ve finished cleaning the bottom shelf/drawer, continue with the inside door until you’re satisfied with the job.
Group ‘em
Group similar foods together. For example, place drinks on one shelf, small snacks in a drawer, and fruits/veggies/salad products in the crisper so you are not constantly ‘hunting down’ the food you want/need at that moment. This arrangement saves you time and makes retrieving food come mealtime a less arduous task.
* Pay attention to the height of your jars and bottles. It is easier to spot your food and drink if you put large/tall jars towards the back of the refrigerator and smaller ones in the front. You’ll never see that container of yogurt if it’s trapped behind a family-sized jar of spaghetti sauce. That’s money (and spoiled yogurt) down the drain...
Give ‘em a home
Growing up, our refrigerator always had what I called ‘The Cheese Box.’ Instead of having that flat package of Swiss cheese teetering atop a jar or the shredded mozzarella accidentally flattened by a side of beef, all the cheeses would ‘live’ together in one plastic container. We always knew where to find them and whether or not we were running low. This is a perfect solution if you have small, like items floating around your fridge. If you have young children, you can create a similar container for each child and fill it with healthy snacks, punch boxes, or a loving note. This keeps ‘little fingers’ from rummaging the shelves and you can control what goes into their ‘snack box.’
Give ‘em a quality home
Whether they hold groupings of food or greasy leftovers, your containers should work for you and not against you. Consider spending a few cents more for quality containers. Lids are less likely to get stuck or fly off. You don’t want to spend your time cleaning the floor or removing stains from your shirt because your container failed to do it’s job. Choose transparent or translucent containers—they allow you to see exactly what’s inside—no surprises!
Give ‘em the same home
Keep your refrigerator organized by making your best attempt to return food and drink to the ‘home’ you’ve created for it. Haphazardly throwing your groceries in the fridge may save you time when you come back from the store but it will cost you precious minutes at meal planning and preparation time.
In order to keep it clean and uncluttered, purge your refrigerator as part of your weekly routine. I recommend tackling this task on the night before your garbage pick-up day. Regularly disposing of smelly substances, rotting vegetables, and other items that have overstayed their welcome will keep your fridge in tip-top shape. With determination, patience, and the right tools your refrigerator can become an organized and functional area of your home.
SIx Tips for Organizing Your Refrigerator
September 24, 2005
|
Stacey Agin Murray, professional organizer and owner of Organized Artistry, LLC, transforms 'mess' into 'masterpiece' with patience, organizing know-how, and a sense of humor. For more articles and to get your FREE e-list of 'Top Ten Tips for Organized Living' visit http://www.organizedartistry.com.
stacey@organizedartistry.com
Lastest Headlines for "Food and Drinks"
- Food products keep Pepsi fizz going (rediff.com)
Pepsi India's revenues are getting more fizz from its food products than beverages and soft drinks. While sales of beverages grew in single digits to Rs 1,073 crore in 2006-07 compared to the previous year, food products sales went up by around 19 per cent to Rs 1082 crore during the same period. - Food products keep Pepsi fizz going (Business Standard India)
Food contributes more revenue than beverages for the first time. Pepsi India’s revenues are getting more fizz from its food products than beverages and soft drinks. - Food Calendar (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Sunday, Aug. 31 So Long to Summer food tour, with stops at XIX for a sampling of fresh seafood, including oysters, mussels and scallops; Tavern 17 for a tasting flight of summer-inspired mixed drinks; and Chima Brazilian Steakhouse for a variety of grilled meats. $45 plus gratuity. Meet at 3:30 p.m. at XIX at the top of the Park Hyatt Philadelphia, Broad and Walnut Sts. Reservations available at ... - Annual event features art, performances, food (Midland Reporter-Telegram)
By Georgia Temple Entertainment Editor Artists booths will dot the grounds of the Museum of the Southwest this coming weekend when the 39th annual Septemberfest opens Friday. The annual event features a weekend of arts and crafts, fine art viewing, live performances, food and activities for children, teenagers and adults. - Charlotte loves its junk food (The Charlotte Observer)
In the list of things that draw attention to Charlotte, here's one you may not want to read: On a list of the 10 U.S. cities where people spend the most amount of their yearly grocery bill on unhealthy food, Charlotte is No. 5. A study of product purchases found that in the Charlotte metro area – defined as Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord – we spend 10.9percent of our annual food dollars in the ... - Brighton cafeteria gets a new, food-court feel (The Ann Arbor News)
When Brighton High School students head for lunch this fall, the surroundings will feel more like the food court in a shopping mall than a school cafeteria. - Church Fall fair coming Sept. 6th (Babylon Beacon)
The annual fall fair at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 800 Candlewood Rd., Brentwood will be held Sat. Sept. 6, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The rain date is Sept. 13. There will be crafts, baked goods, jewelry, beauty products and gently used articles. Food and drinks will be available at a modest cost. - Shoppers lose taste for organic food (Guardian Unlimited)
Farmers fear for future as decline in demand for organic food grows at fastest rate for 10 years - Charlotte loves its junk food (The Charlotte Observer)
In the list of things that draw attention to Charlotte, here's one you may not want to read: On a list of the 10 U.S. cities where people spend the most amount of their yearly grocery bill on unhealthy food, Charlotte is No. 5 A study of product purchases found that in the Charlotte metro area – defined as Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord – we spend 10.9 percent of our annual food dollars in ... - For the kitchen that thinks it has everything... (Detroit Free Press)
Here are some of the latest things homeowners want added to their kitchens. Warming drawers: These are the ultimate for keeping your just-cooked food warm, or for heating up empty plates before serving dinner.