How to organise your kitchen like a chef
We’ve all followed a recipe step by step only to be dismayed when it’s taken much longer than anticipated. The key to chefs running an efficient kitchen is organisation. Nobody wants to spend unnecessary time trying to find the items in your pantry. Follow these industry secrets to create a kitchen that can run as efficiently as a celebrity chef’s.
1. Pantry
Do you know what’s in your pantry? Even in the darkest and deepest depths? If you keep track of what’s in the pantry, you’ll ensure you use up what’s in the kitchen cupboard. No more discovering expired food in the back! Organise spices by date so you know when you have to use them up by. Throw out anything that has been in your pantry for over a year. If you don’t use it, you won’t miss it and chances are that it is already past its expiry date.
2. Fridge
One key way to organising your fridge is sorting according to the cooking temperature of the foods. If you store your foods based off their cooking temperature you will avoid cross contamination and ensure you have a hygienic kitchen.
Assess the items in your fridge and see if you can put them in your freezer. By freezing food you can lengthen its shelf life. For example, if you have half a stick of ginger you can store it in the freezer but just make sure you don’t forget about it.!
3. Menu
In a restaurant, no prep is done during the service, it’s all done before. So when it comes to cooking, all ingredients are ready to go. Invest in spending one time during the week prepping for your weeknight meals. This will free up your time during the week when you need it the most.
Get into the habit of getting your groceries for the entire week so you can have all ingredients ready to go for your prep time. This will not only save you time but also money as you won’t get carried away grabbing unnecessary items during quick trips to the shops.