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Do you lament the disorganization in your kitchen? A lot of us complain about how long it takes to prepare our food, but oftentimes we are making it harder on ourselves by allowing our kitchens to remain so cluttered. Taking a couple of hours to organize your pantry closet can save you time every day thereafter as you prepare your meals. Here are 5 quick tips to getting your pantry organized.

1. Any storage space in your kitchen can be a pantry.

Oftentimes people who live in small spaces believe that they do not have a pantry simply because there is no pantry closet. Your kitchen is very much what you make of it, though. If you have a little extra space under your sink or in a cabinet, you can use that space as a small pantry. A pantry is any area where you store food and spices. You just have to get it organized.

2. Have a goal.

When you set up a kitchen pantry, it is wise to start out with a goal. Why are you setting up a pantry? Is it to make your spices and dry goods easy to find when preparing daily meals? Is it to have a small backup supply of food in case something unexpected happens? Your goal should serve as guidance for your entire organizational plan.

3. Buy containers.

One of the keys to maintaining a well-organized kitchen pantry is containment. Nothing gets messier faster than a closet full of loose boxes, half-empty bags, and jumbled spice containers. After you figure out what you want to put in your pantry, make a list of containers you will need. Jars work great, and so do sealed plastic food containers. For spices, you should purchase a spice rack (you may want to get the spices out of your pantry completely, unless it is a very spacious pantry).

4. Label your containers.

This is a step which is often overlooked by beginners organizing their pantries! Once you put all your dry goods (flour, nuts, oats, cocoa, etc.) into plastic storage bins, how will you identify them immediately on sight? Dry goods can look very similar when they are out of their original packaging. Make nice labels for each of your bins and jars so that everyone who uses the kitchen can see what is inside each of the bins at a glance!

Once you have set up your pantry, the initial hard work is done, but that doesn’t mean that you can forget about it. A clean, organized pantry requires maintenance. You may want to take an inventory, and regularly re-stock on the items which are running low. With everything inside containers, you shouldn’t have to deal with a lot of spills, but you probably should still routinely take everything out and wipe down your shelves. After you get your pantry organized, show off your work to everyone in the household, and let them know how it works and where everything belongs. That way you can continue to enjoy your working pantry!