Food, Form, and Function: Organizing Your Kitchen and Pantry

The Weekly Tittle is an exercise designed to focus your attention on a specific space, aspect, or challenge of decluttering and organizing your home. We assign a new tittle in each webcast/podcast, then check on your progress the following week.

Eat It or Street It

This week’s assignment is to free up space in your food storage areas by culling items that no longer meet the criteria to stay there:

• Take a careful look through your pantry, fridge, freezer, spice rack, or other food storage space in search of food items or ingredients that meet any of the following criteria:
  • You bought the ingredient for a recipe that you never made.
  • You used the ingredient for a recipe, but you had some left over that you’ve never used up.
  • You tried a new ingredient or prepared food, but you or your family didn’t like it.
  • You’ve stored the item for so long that the expiration date has come and gone.
  • You received the item as a gift, but it’s not a food that you enjoy.
  • You don’t even remember how the item ended up in your pantry.
• Pull out five items—or more—that satisfy any of the criteria listed above, and take the appropriate action for each one:
  • If something you’ve found still seems appealing, plan a meal that will use the item or ingredient in the next two weeks.
  • For unwanted items that are still in good condition and unopened, donate them to a food pantry or shelter.
  • For unwanted items that are still usable but opened, look for a family member or friend who would like to use the remainder.
  • For unwanted items that are past their expiration dates or of dubious quality, throw them away—or empty, rinse, and recycle the containers.

For the full discussion of this week’s tittle, watch the Weekly Tittle segment on YouTube.