Products and tools for organization of fridge and freezer

[jgm]

I've purchased a bunch of small containers so that I can freeze leftover wine, and small bits of this and that. I also want to start saving Parmesan rinds for use in soup. I already freeze stock and soup, and some meals I've made ahead.

In the fridge, I have some small trays that help to group mustards, pickles, etc.

And every now and then, I get on a fridge- or freezer- cleaning binge, and I think, "I didn't even know that was in there, and now it's out of date and I have to throw it out."

So what do you do to keep your refrigerator and freezer from becoming a place where good stuff gets lost, almost never to be seen again? There's gotta be a better way.

I could make inventories. But it won't help to know there's 1/4 cup of frozen white wine, 2 cups of frozen chicken, half a package of pine nuts, and 2 Parmesan rinds, if I have to spend 20 minutes searching for them.

Ideas! I need ideas!

[feedmec00kies]

Do you keep certain kinds of foods in certain regions of your fridge/freezer? I've found that always helps. When there's little bits and pieces of things, I'd try and group them in little bins that I can pull out and search through without digging for 20 minutes...

[KarenDW]

I used to have my freezer separated into areas for breads, proteins, and produce. Then I got roommates.

I also used to use one of the crisper drawers in the fridge, just for condiments. Then someone else decided we should get a new fridge, with fancy shelves on the door. There's not enough room for the condiments.

Some days I think I should get new roommates.

Also, for freezing, I actually prefer zipper bags to containers for some items (anything which can be squished flat), as the bags take less space. Chopped vegetables, extra bits of thicker sauces, soups & stews, pesto, also for the cubes of stock/tomato paste/juice that are left from other recipes, even pasta with sauce; these can all go in zipper bags.

Edited October 5, 2007 by KarenDW (log)

[Darienne]

Just found this topic. Aarrgghhhh!

We have two full size fridges. TWO! One in the kitchen and one in the attached garage. (I also have my kitchen 'stuff' in the garage, the breezeway, the kitchen and my studio. Oh, and the cellar.)(And the stairs down to the cellar. But that's a different whine. )

We also have two roughly 100 pound dogs who eat (house and garage) raw meat and crushed veggies and refrigerated supplements and from late April until the end of September stored several filled hummingbird feeders and/or containers of made hummingbird food. (No, you would not believe the number of hummers we get in a essentially gardenless farm homestead.)

And like many of you out there in eG land, we also cook from many different cultures so we have opened bottles of(house) cheeses, meats, dairy items, fresh vegetables and fruits, 2 or 3 dozen eggs, Asian, Middle Eastern and African condiments, and (garage)Indian condiments, Caribbean (garage) ingredients, North American condiments, soda water, beer, and no doubt on and on. Not to mention storage of the leftovers.

What can I do?

This morning was a tiny crisis. We have begun to eat more varied cheeses and now the cheese container had to be changed for a bigger one. Which necessitated moving a lot of other things around. Minor, but telling. I need an efficiency expert to help me.

Help! I can't cope. I have stuff gathered together in containers, but I still can't get a handle on it. Plus, the DH, the light of my life, the rocks beneath my feet (and the pebbles in my shoes ) has no order to his life. If there's room, he'll put it anywhere...assuming he puts it back at all. OK. There probably is no answer. While not an engineer, I am the daughter of one and as such an obsessive/compulsive order maker. All suggestions gratefully received.

[nakji]

You got a picture of that fridge? What kind of dimensions are we working with?

[Darienne]

Could never send a photo of the inside my fridges. The garage fridge looks dreadful. It was painted a few years ago and badly needs repainting.

Kitchen fridge. Sears Kenmore. 5'5".

Hotpoint. 5'.

[Darienne]

A kind of a thank-you note to all who participated in the last three or so freezer clean-out/organization/etc topics. They have finally spurred me into a solution for our very long-standing...about 50 years...freezer triangle of unknowns.

Computer generated lists now exist and once a week we do a freezer check together...togetherness is necessary because we both cook although different things.

We did the freezer check today and it took less than 5 minutes and it will be even easier as we amass more square plastic pails from our local grocery store (muffin mix pails, etc).

Who knew that part of our life could ever be rectified?

Thanks again.

[ScoopKW]

Tape, and a sharpie. I write the date on everything. Newer stuff is put in the back, and older stuff is pulled from the front.

What I'd like to find, is a modular system of storage containers designed to fit in the average freezer.

[Darienne]

Tape, and a sharpie. I write the date on everything. Newer stuff is put in the back, and older stuff is pulled from the front.

What I'd like to find, is a modular system of storage containers designed to fit in the average freezer.

The plastic muffin mix square pails, with handles, ought to be available for free at any supermarket/grocery which sells fresh baked goods. They fit into a chest freezer superbly and stack beautifully.

And I use Staples white mailing labels and write on the stored goods with a permanent marker. Cooked meats in one, casseroles in another, frozen vegs, frozen fruit, etc.

We also became quite ruthless and retired our longtime collection of mis-matched plastic containers & lids and bought an ever-growing set of only one kind of container...all lids now fit all containers...to use in the fridge and freezer...although many freezer items end up in plastic bags. Nothing beats a resealable plastic bag for space saving.

The mismatchers go into a closed Rubbermaid container in the garage and are given away with whatever is in them with a 'no return' option. I picked this brilliant idea up from a friend. So now if someone gives me leftovers, confections, baked goods, whatever to take home in a 'disposable' container, I recycle that orphan container into my 'no need to return' collection.

All this organization of life is a bit unnerving at times...

[KitchenQueen]

I've never been able to keep my freezer organized.

It's always so full I find small openings to shove things into. I just follow the light, if there is any.

But it saves time on menu planning. I open the freezer .

Whatever falls on my foot first is that night's dinner.