Do you know what is lurking in your refrigerator? Do you really know? Last week's leftover pizza and past-ripe fruits tend to overstay their welcome in their cold compartments. If that's the case, it's time for a fridge makeover. Spend a little time spring cleaning and organizing your fridge so you know exactly what's in there and can access items easily.
Step 1: Eliminate the question marks
Start by clearing your fridge and freezer of items that are past their prime. Don't be forgiving when it comes to old take-out containers or lettuce on the verge of wilting. In the freezer, check items for freezer burn. As a general rule, toss something if you are not sure if it's still good. It is better to start fresh.
Step 2: Check the dates
Check the date on longer lasting items such as salad dressing and condiments — while they have longer shelf lives, they don't stay fresh forever.
Step 3: Organize the door
Speaking of condiments, the door shelves are a great place for these little guys. You can store a lot of them in one shelf – try to keep dressings, condiments and sauces in the same area. The door is also a great place to store beverages such as juice and soda. Don't, however, store milk in the door. Put it on the top or middle shelf of the refrigerator.
Step 4: Consider the cans
If you tend to overstock your fridge with canned soda or beer, invest in a can caddy to save space. Some newer refrigerator models even have cool side pockets for cans that are built-in.
Step 5: Fill the drawers
Keep all deli meat and cheese in the deli drawer, and fruit and vegetables in their designated drawers. The temperature in these areas tends to be slightly different and is usually set from the manufacturer to be just right for each of these food categories.
Step 6: Throw away the clutter
Unless you are really going to use them, toss the little packets of ketchup and soy sauce that you picked up on your last fast food run
TIPS*
On the top shelf, which is usually the tallest, place bottled beverages and a filtered water jug.
On the side door's top shelf, place butter and blocks of cheese.
On the second shelf, stack leftovers in plastic containers on one side. On the other side, store deli meat, bread, and eggs in their original container.On the second side door shelf, group small condiments together by type, i.e. jellies and mustards.
On the bottom shelf, store milk, yogurt, sour cream, and cottage cheese on one half. On the other side, store all raw meats.
On the third side door shelf, group international condiments like Italian sun-dried tomatoes, olives, and Asian curry pastes.
In the low-humidity drawer, divide and organize fruit by type. Avoid storing dense fruit like apples on top of delicate fruit like berries.
In a fourth side door shelf, group larger jars together by type, such as bouillon pastes, miso pastes, nut butters, and pickles.
In a high-humidity (crisper) drawer, divide and organize vegetables by type. Avoid storing dense veggies on top of delicate greens.
In the tallest bottom side-door , place tall bottles of condiments including ketchup and soy sauce and any other large juice bottles or nondairy milks.
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