Kitchen Clutter Clean-up – Pots and Pans

I have seen some articles this month encouraging readers to get rid of the clutter in their kitchen.  Having things that you use often within easy reach will cut down on time spent preparing meals and possibly reduce stress for holiday and get-together preparations.  Also cleaning out the excess can prevent things from falling out or getting hidden when they are needed – digging through drawers and cabinets or clean-up messes can be very frustrating when your have time constraints.  Of the clutter reducing tips, I found one I thought was unique (involves using a small curtain tension rod as dividers to create slots in a cabinet to store cookie sheets and cake pans on their side), several I already use and one that was definitely not smart advice.  With that in mind, below I share some of my own ideas with you.

Steamer Pot with Lid

First, let us start with pots, pans, and their lids.  I like to stack my frying pans on one shelf and the other pots on another next to the stove.  Why?  Where do I use them?  On or in the stove of course!  My baking pans are in the storage drawer under stove as I only use those occasionally like at holidays or when expecting dinner guests.  If your oven does not have this storage drawer, then user another cabinet near the oven preferably on the opposite side that the day-to-day pots.  There are no lids for the baking pans so I do not have to worry about oven heat possibly distorting handles.  Now back to stacking the frying pans, I kept the soft-shaped cardboard that came between the pans to put between them to keep them from scratching the non-stick surface of the one it is placed in.  Yes, that makes restacking a little more work but my pans will last much longer.  If you did not keep the cardboard, paper plates will work just as well between the pan layers.  My lids for fryers stand on their sides leaning against the wall of the cabinet next to the fryers. 

My sauce pots each have their lid turned upside down, and then a smaller pot is stacked on top.  My larger pots for soups and roasts are behind the smaller sauce pots since they are not used as often.  If you cook larger meals more then you may want to place your big posts in front.  Next time, I will share my ideas on storing serving items like plates, platters bowls, and utensils.

By the way, if you are a cookbook collector (like my hubby), I would suggest you put up a shelf for them if you are limited on cabinet space.  My brother (a carpenter) shared a great idea on building bookshelves with me.  Basically you put them upside down of what most people think of for installing a shelf.  This way the decorative brackets that are usually on the bottom are on top and can double as book-ends!  Cool idea, right?