Home organization tips and tricks are everywhere these days, from the pantry to the playroom, but what about organizing your fridge? When everything is neatly organized, it’s far easier to see what you have on hand and what you need to pick up on the next trip to the grocery store. On top of that, good fridge organizationcan help you cut down on household food waste!
So, let’s talk about how to organize your fridge and how to store produce properly. Read on for five fridge organization ideas that will help you transform your refrigerator setup, reduce food waste, and put a smile on your face whenever you open those doors.
Step 1- Get the Best Fridge that Suits your Family’s Storage Needs
To start, let’s look at the big picture: your choice of fridge. Depending on the size of your household, you may need a larger or smaller fridge to achieve the perfect combination of storage space and energy usage. Larger households, for example, will benefit the most from French door refrigerators or 4-door refrigerators. These spacious styles enable you to store plenty of food while also keeping it organized and easy to peruse.
Sometimes, even all that space isn’t quite enough. When that happens, an option like our Custom-Flex ® Temp drawer in the 4-Door French Door models can save the day. This feature allows you to extend your fridge or freezer space at the touch of a button. Talk about fridge organization heaven! Considering your family’s buying habits is crucial to the success of finding the right refrigerator for your household. Is every Friday night pizza night? Consider a side-by-side fridge with space for up to 5 pizza boxes on the top shelf.
Step 2- Clean It Out
Remove All Items
So, you’ve got the right refrigerator to meet your family’s needs, now what? The first step towards stellar refrigerator organization is to take everything out of your fridge. It might be tempting to skip this step, but we promise it’ll make a world of difference. Be sure to empty everything from your crisper drawers to the shelves on the inside of your fridge doors. This is also a great opportunity to toss expired condiments and other items.
Wipe Down All Surfaces
Once you’ve emptied your fridge, wipe it down thoroughly. We recommend using a kitchen cleaner and a microfiber cloth to reduce paper towel usage. Cleaning any food spills and removing debris from your fridge will give you the perfect clean slate to restock and organize all your foods that go in the fridge.
Get Rid of Smells
Is your fridge clean but a little smelly? We’ll take care of that, too. Odors from food and produce can sometimes linger and affect the rest of the items in your fridge. A refrigerator air filter works even better than baking soda to capture and keep odors away, keeping your fridge and freezer smelling fresh.
Step 3- Store Food Properly
Next up on our list of refrigerator organization ideas: storing food the right way. Unfortunately, it’s been estimated that 30 to 40 percent of the food supply in the United States is wasted. You can cut down on waste in your own household by understanding how and where certain foods should be kept. Keeping your refrigerator organized will also help you reduce waste—when you can see what you have on hand, you’ll be more likely to use it and less likely to accidentally purchase extra while shopping.
Dairy Bin
Best for butter or soft cream spreads
Expandable Door Bin
Bins allow you to move to fit tall items like wine, juices, and water.
Door Bins
Condiments, juices temperature-safe foods frequently used items or small jars that might get lost on shelves.
Upper Shelves
Great location for leftovers, drinks, and ready-to-eat foods.
Middle Shelves
Great location for leftovers, yogurt, snacks like hummus and fruit cups.
Lower Shelves
Raw meats (in proper stroage containers) and dairy products like milk, yogurt, sour cream and cottage cheese should be stored on lower shelves.
Crisper Drawer
Crisper drawers are designed to store produce. Fruits and vegtables are best kept in different crisper drawers, this helps to keep produce fresh, so you waste less food and save more money.
Snack Zone
Best for cheese sticks or other small easy to grab snacks.
Top Shelves
You might think of your fridge as one area that keeps everything equally cold. Our TwinTech® Cooling System works to minimize temperature fluctuations throughout the fridge and freezer. However, if you have a large family who frequently opens the refrigerator and interacts more with certain shelves, your fridge can have slight variances in temperature that can affect how well food keeps. This is why proper fridge organization is particularly important. The top shelf of your fridge can be warmer than the lower shelves because they’re interacted with more often, for example, so this is a good spot to store already cooked leftovers, ready-to-eat foods, and other items that aren’t raw. Prepared salads, berries, herbs, drinks, and dips like hummus are more examples of food items that can be kept on the top shelf.
Bottom Shelves
Bottom shelves are go-to storage spot for raw foods and other perishable products that need to be kept quite cold. Uncooked meat and fish, along with dairy products like milk and yogurt, will keep the best down here.
Crisper Drawers
If you’re still wondering how to store produce effectively, we’ve got the simplest answer right here: CrispSeal Crisper Drawers with Auto-Humidity. These are key to keeping your colorful fruits and veggies looking and tasting great. Crisper drawers work by blocking out dry air while still removing excess moisture, creating the perfect level of humidity needed to preserve your produce. Citrus fruits, apples, broccoli, carrots, celery, cauliflower, cucumbers, and peppers are just a few examples of produce that will do best when kept in a crisper drawer.