Storing Spices

[Anna N]

[...

A great idea, but wouldn't you deal with the occasional catastrophe of one of those tins falling off the door while it was beeing open/closed?  I can imagine myself cleaning some otherwise perfectly good spices off of my floor on many an occasion.

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No problems so far. These are pretty powerful magnets and the lids fit very securely so that even if one fell off, there's a good chance of no spills.

[Cleo]

These tins from The Container Store have been working well for me. Not magnetic. I stack them in one of my cabinets and I made labels for each one.

[Darcie B]

I have a wide drawer in which I keep most of my spices. I transferred them from their original containers (generally Penzey's bags) into these Penzey's jars.

I have 47 jars in there and could have more if I used smaller jars and kept the remainder in the fridge.

[jgm]

Maybe this is a whole new thread, but how do you arrange your spices? Alphabetically? Or do you group them? If so, what kind of groups?

[RonC]

Cool - thanks for sharing!

Sidecar Ron

I have a wide drawer in which I keep most of my spices. I transferred them from their original containers (generally Penzey's bags) into these Penzey's jars.

I have 47 jars in there and could have more if I used smaller jars and kept the remainder in the fridge.

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[RonC]

Mrs. Sidecar is an English Major - gotta be alphabetically.

Ol' Sidecar Ron

Maybe this is a whole new thread, but how do you arrange your spices?  Alphabetically?  Or do you group them?  If so, what kind of groups?

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[SuzySushi]

I have a plain oak spice rack that's been following me around for the past 25 years. I bought it at a kitchenware store in Brookyn Heights, but I've seen similar ones for sale on eBay, in various sizes. It can be mounted on a wall or is stable enough to stand on a counter.

Mine has 3 tiers and holds about 30 standard spice jars (a few more if I squeeze them together a little). I've saved the glass jars from old spices to use for new spices. Larger back-up quantities and spices/herbs that lose their fragrance quickly get stored in the freezer, in 2 layers of Ziploc freezer bags. I haven't found a problem with transferred flavors/scents.

[edsel]

I keep the most-frequently-used spices in little jars with ceramic grinder heads. Bulk supplies and larger spices like Ancho chilis get vacuum-sealed in mason jars. (We get those obnoxious meal moths in Ohio, too, Fifi).

I keep the "bulk" stuff away from sunlight. The least-used stuff (for me, at least), like black cardomom and cubeb pepper, gets stashed in vacuum-sealed jars or pouches in the cellar where it's dark and cool.

A few small and expensive items like saffron, fennel pollen, "exquisite"-grade paprika, get vacuum-sealed and refridgerated.

One little rule that I have to remind myself of: the "frequently-used" stuff has to be turned over often, even if it means tossing some occasionally.

As for organization, that's a whole 'nother pathology.

[abadoozy]

I have those little jars of herbs/spices stashed in no fewer than 4 places around my kitchen and pantry - the very-common spices in small jars from Penzey's, nicely labeled and stored in a drawer. A big plastic bin of the secondary spices (whole peppercorns to fill the pepper grinders, cinnamon sticks, etc) stashed in a cupboard. Refills for the small jars in the drawer in plastic envelopes on a shelf in the pantry. And another box in the pantry with dried chilies and other "big" spices that don't fit anywhere else.

And I just remembered, a bowl on the counter with a bunch of samples sent to me by a friend.

Does anyone have a good system to store way-too-many spices? I do go through them all, they're not old or forgotten or anything like that. But I have too many to fit in any sort of commercial rack. I'm wondering if there's some sort of nice case or box that would hold, say, 50+ small jars.

And, of course, I've got my eye on all the stuff necessary for Modernist Cuisine projects. So add in another 10 or 15 jars of various thickeners, transformers, spherification agents, etc.

[cteavin]

I have the same problem.

What I did was keep the leaf-type herbs in the deep freezer and I placed the other spices in a small bottles with the names on the top and put them in a three drawer plastic shelving unit in a cabinet. When I pull out the drawer I can read what's in the bottle from the label on top.

I put the larger bags of spices (which I use to refill those small bottles) in triple zip-locked bags in a box in the coolest part of the kitchen (under the sink), so it's out of the way. This system works for me.

[weinoo]

You could always have Chris Hennes come over and build you one of these... .

[Jenni]

I have a large cupboard with three shelves for spices. Top shelf has all the half open and unopened bags for refills. Middle shelf has jars of spices ready to be dipped into and used. Bottom shelf has dried herbs and a few spices that I don't use much - these are mostly my Dad's and are for non-Indian cookery.

[abadoozy]

You could always have Chris Hennes come over and build you one of these... .

That picture was one of the reasons I started that thread. Unfortunately, I have absolutely no wall space in my kitchen - it's all covered with cabinets.

[weinoo]

LOL. Even Hennes can't solve your problem then.

[Kayakado]

I store those small jars in a drawer too but I use a paint marker to label the tops of them so I can tell at a glance what I have. I keep refills/bulk spices in a box in a high cabinet, those spices that I have refills for are marked with an X on top so I know I can refill it. If I was really good... I had a computer program to track my inventory.

[runwestierun]

I have something similar to these:

http://www.amazon.com/Piece-Magnetic-Spice-Rack-Decanters/dp/B001QSALF4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299607474&sr=8-1

---literally 135 of them stuck on the side of my refrigerator. They are magnetic on the back. The edge of the lid screws around to expose a slot for pouring or some holes for sprinkling. Or you can of course take the lid off for measuring. The whole lot is alphabetized, I find that's easier than dividing spices up into categories. I've used a labelmaker to label each one across the front. The capacity of each can is 4 ounces, so I try to only buy what will fit in the can so I don't have bags everywhere.

Then I have some of the MC chemicals in the fridge and freezer. I have lots of frozen herbs in the freezer. I also have a box in the pantry full of the loose bags of spices that I do have. Lastly I have a rack on the wall of the pantry that holds big bottles of mostly spice mixes. The magnetic cans have cut down significantly on the amount of shelf and drawer space that is occupied by spices.

In my first house, these were on the side of the fridge. Second house, on 2 stainless steel plates screwed to the kitchen wall. Third house, front of the fridge. Fourth house, steel plates on inside door of pantry. This house, side of the fridge again.

[PetersCreek]

One of the gee-whiz features that caught our attention when we bought our house is a built-in, swing-out spice rack:

Now, don't ask me to show you what's behind that rack. It's chock full of more herbs & spices.

[abadoozy]

If I was really good... I had a computer program to track my inventory.

You and me both. I'm a software developer, and I've been pondering throwing together a smart phone app that tracks my spices - could even bar code them! Now, is that a sign of a dedicated home cook, or just pure obsessiveness?

[abadoozy]

I have something similar to these:

http://www.amazon.com/Piece-Magnetic-Spice-Rack-Decanters/dp/B001QSALF4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299607474&sr=8-1

---literally 135 of them stuck on the side of my refrigerator. They are magnetic on the back. The edge of the lid screws around to expose a slot for pouring or some holes for sprinkling. Or you can of course take the lid off for measuring. The whole lot is alphabetized, I find that's easier than dividing spices up into categories. I've used a labelmaker to label each one across the front. The capacity of each can is 4 ounces, so I try to only buy what will fit in the can so I don't have bags everywhere.

If I hadn't already invested in a whole pile of Penzey's jars (and labelled them) I'd be tempted to go with this solution. But after buying all these jars, I'd rather not change unless I can't figure out anything else.

Then I have some of the MC chemicals in the fridge and freezer. I have lots of frozen herbs in the freezer. I also have a box in the pantry full of the loose bags of spices that I do have. Lastly I have a rack on the wall of the pantry that holds big bottles of mostly spice mixes. The magnetic cans have cut down significantly on the amount of shelf and drawer space that is occupied by spices.

In my first house, these were on the side of the fridge. Second house, on 2 stainless steel plates screwed to the kitchen wall. Third house, front of the fridge. Fourth house, steel plates on inside door of pantry. This house, side of the fridge again.

Heh, what's becoming increasingly apparent in this thread is that I'm not the only one with 5 different spots in the house for herb/spice storage.

[Chris Hennes]

LOL. Even Hennes can't solve your problem then.

Hey man, have a little faith!

Do you have any cabinet space to spare, or can you arrange some? They sell drawer inserts for cabinets (or you can build one if you are handy), and if you also label the tops of your spice jars you can squeeze quit a few in a full-depth bottom cabinet.

[Darienne]

Another thing to do if you have any free wall space at all is to remove the wallboard and build into that small space in the wall interior. This is what my DH has done.

(Contents are currently in transition and of course, this little cupboard doesn't begin to hold everything.)

Edited March 8, 2011 by Darienne (log)

[peterm2]

Here's the solution I built. Holds 56 spices, although right now my top shelf is in disarray. I'm using jars with a clear top so you can see how many are left, and I've got them in alphabetical order so it's super-easy to find whatever I'm looking for. It's definitely made a big difference in how often I use spices. When it was a pain to dig out a bag or bottle from who-knows-where, I sometimes just wouldn't bother. Now not only can I find them all, but I can also just look through and get new ideas from having everything right in front of me!

And no, my kitchen doesn't defy gravity. I can't figure out how to rotate the picture.

Edited March 8, 2011 by peterm2 (log)

[rarerollingobject]

I have something similar to these:

http://www.amazon.com/Piece-Magnetic-Spice-Rack-Decanters/dp/B001QSALF4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299607474&sr=8-1

---literally 135 of them stuck on the side of my refrigerator. They are magnetic on the back. The edge of the lid screws around to expose a slot for pouring or some holes for sprinkling. Or you can of course take the lid off for measuring. The whole lot is alphabetized, I find that's easier than dividing spices up into categories. I've used a labelmaker to label each one across the front. The capacity of each can is 4 ounces, so I try to only buy what will fit in the can so I don't have bags everywhere.

This is my solution too, but the tins run pretty expensive (I've seen them in Australia for AUD$75 for 6!!) so I came up with a cheap hack; ordered a case of 50 glass-topped bomboniere tins from a wedding supply store for something like $20 (like these), and some rare earth magnets from an electrical/hardware store. Didn't even require gluing the magnets onto the tins.

[Anna N]

I have something similar to these:

http://www.amazon.com/Piece-Magnetic-Spice-Rack-Decanters/dp/B001QSALF4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299607474&sr=8-1

---literally 135 of them stuck on the side of my refrigerator. They are magnetic on the back. The edge of the lid screws around to expose a slot for pouring or some holes for sprinkling. Or you can of course take the lid off for measuring. The whole lot is alphabetized, I find that's easier than dividing spices up into categories. I've used a labelmaker to label each one across the front. The capacity of each can is 4 ounces, so I try to only buy what will fit in the can so I don't have bags everywhere.

................................

That's what I do. Mine are on the front of the fridge.

[Wholemeal Crank]

I do this

Spices in their keepers

and this

They're sorted by things I used together--spices for sweets, savory seeds, savory herbs, ground spices, oddballs. The baskets make them easy to grab & use.

Bulk bags from which those are refilled are in a pair of large tupperware bins in another cabinet.

(need to update those photos since I got a labeller and made the labels neater)