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A dirty and messy refrigerator can be more than demoralizing. It can cause you to waste food because it gets lost or forgotten and can kill your motivation to cook healthy meals at home. It’s one of those chores that can feel like it’s always due to be done. That is because a clean and organized refrigerator is not a once-and-done task. It’s something you should be keeping up with at all times so that it becomes effortless. Let me share the 8 tips that have worked best for me.
Tips for a clean and organized refrigerator
#1 – Don’t overstock your fridge
It is obvious that the more stuff is inside your fridge, the harder it is to find something. It also becomes that much harder to keep it clean and organized. A great way to be successful is to know what is in your fridge and grocery shop with a list.
If you show up at the grocery with no plan and no knowledge of what you already have, you will likely overbuy. Meal planning is a great way to avoid overbuying. Check out my article to learn how to meal plan if this is a new concept to you that you are interested to learn more about.
Additionally, I recommend not buying for more than a week at a time. If this isn’t possible because you live in a remote location, consider using refrigerated items in the first week after you grocery shop and move to pantry items meal later on.
#2 – Throw away expired food often
Throwing away old and expired food should not be a yearly event. You need to do this on a routine basis to keep up with your fridge organization.
Every week, before you write your grocery, throw away any leftover food. Also, look at your produce and discard anything that is no longer fresh enough to consume.
Every month, take time to go through all the condiments and review the expiration dates. Throw away what is expired and take note of what is about to expire. You can try to find a recipe with these items for the upcoming week so that the food doesn’t end up going to waste.
#3 – Weekly light cleaning
If you are following tips #1 & #2, the content of your fridge should be pretty light on grocery shopping day. Therefore, take a few minutes to do a light cleaning of the interior of your fridge. Wipe down any spills that took place during the week and move back things that perhaps belong to a different area of the fridge. It will only take a few moments every week but this will help you keep a clean and organized refrigerator with minimal effort.
#4 – Have a produce drawers method
It is difficult to buy the exact amount of produce needed each week. Unless you purchase individual carrots, celery branches, etc you are likely going to have remaining fruits and vegetables in your refrigerator at the end of the week. I use a system that has been working pretty well for me that I will share with you.
Most fridges have two drawers for produce. I use the bottom drawer for newer/fresher produce and the top one for the fruits and vegetables leftover from the week before. Therefore, before I go to the grocery, per tip #2 I throw away any fruits and veggies that are spoiled. Then I move all remaining produce to the top drawer. When I get back from the grocery, the newly purchased items go straight into the bottom drawer.
This method helps me use up older fruits and veggies and minimize our waste.
#5 – Move older items towards the front
When you do your light weekly clean-up, move all items that are open and need to be used up towards the front of the fridge. For example, if you buy a new yogurt but already have an open container to finish, make sure it goes in the front so that someone will reach for that one first.
Additionally, if you buy a replacement condiment because you know you are almost out of it, do not put it in the fridge until you finish the other one. Of course, if it is a refrigerated item you will need to and in this case, put it in the back.
#6 – Do a quarterly deep clean
Once a quarter, it is important to deep clean your refrigerator. This is when you fully clean all the drawers and shelves with warm soapy water. It will ensure that everything is sanitized and that no unpleasant odors come out of your fridge. Obviously, do this before going grocery shopping while the content is as light as possible.
This may sound like a big chore. However, if you use my previous tips it will only take you a short time to complete.
#7 – Use stackable containers
To optimize the space in your fridge, it’s important to use containers that you can easily stack. Ziplock bags are not only damaging to the environment, but they are also quite hard to use when you are hoping for an organized refrigerator. Invest in good glass containers that you can easily organize like a puzzle to optimize your space.
#8 – Create kids sections
I understand this tip might not apply if you do not have kids. Although you might have a spouse or roommate who isn’t in charge of the fridge organization and/or grocery shopping for who this might still be useful.
Create sections in the fridge where all things your children reach for by themselves can be easily found and reached. This is helpful for a few reasons. First, they will use the food you bought because they see it and know it’s there. Second, they will not rummage through the fridge looking for something creating a huge mess that you will need to fix.
Be creative and make this work for you. Feel free to use baskets, labels, or other things to help organize this section.
In conclusion..
Living in a clean and organized space is beneficial for your well-being. Although you do not see the inside of your fridge all the time, it can be a real turn-off when you open it and deter you from making food at home. I hope this article was helpful and gave you practical ways in which you can easily keep a clean and organized refrigerator.
Feel free to share with me other tips that you use in your daily life.
Thank you for reading.
Cat xx