The Best Ways to Organize Your Refrigerator

By Parinatha Sampath

 

Good food is the key to a healthy and happy heart, and when you know how to organize your refrigerator, it'll help you toward that goal. We’ve put together this easy DIY home improvement routine to help you create a coordinated cooler.

 

Organizing Your Fridge

To understand the science behind this home organization idea, you must first clear everything out of your fridge. Throw out all your expired and rotten food out and place the stuff you’re keeping aside for now. Once you’ve wiped the shelves clean, begin organizing from the coldest region in the fridge to the warmest.

 

 

Pizzas, Nuts, Broths

As much as you’d like to freeze everything, that’s not always wise. The freezer is mostly ideal to store ice cubes, frozen pizzas, some meats, fish, shrimp, stews and stocks, grated coconut, pancakes and waffles. It’s also ideal for diced vegetables such as peas and corn, among others.

 

 

Crispers: Fruits and Vegetables

Now, most refrigerators come with two crisper drawers on the bottom. One might be labeled “high humidity,” and the other, “low humidity.” Remember to store vegetables in the high humidity drawer and fruits in the low-humidity drawer.

 

 

Bottom Shelf: Dairy and Meat

Although the door shelves might seem like the ideal place to store dairy and eggs, it's not, actually. The temperature on the door shelves is slightly higher than then inner shelves’ temperature. So, the backs of the bottom shelves work perfectly for dairy products such as milk, yogurt, and cheese. That said, butter and soft cheese can be stored in the door. Meats, on the other hand, are often frozen, but they should do fine in airtight containers (to avoid drips and contamination) on the bottom shelf.

 

Middle Shelf: Eggs and Wine Bottles

Shelves in the middle don’t get too warm or cold, and your egg containers need this consistent temperature. You can also use the middle shelf to store wine bottles. Since they should be kept cold, the middle shelf is perfect. Just place the bottles on their side to ensure the most efficient use of the available space.

 

 

Leftovers

The top shelf is ideal for leftovers because it’s usually warmer than all the other areas inside your fridge, and more importantly, it’s easy to reach! That way, you have a higher chance of consuming food before it goes bad.

 

 

Condiments

You guessed right: the doors! The top shelf in your door could hold your sauces and ketchup, and the middle shelf can hold juices, sparkling water and other beverages. The bottommost shelf, which often has the least amount of space, is perfect for various cooking powders and ingredients.

 

To make the organization process easier, use different refrigerator organization containers! They’ll spare you from having to clean your fridge as often.

 

 

Images used with permission, courtesy of www.dreamstime.com and www.shutterstock.com