Organizing your pantry Part 2: creating zones

I hope you enjoyed part 1 of the #uncomplicate your pantry series. My goal is to give you the steps and tips for creating a beautifully organized and uncomplicated pantry. 

Did you toss all of your expired packaged food? After you finish this series, you won’t have that much to toss again. Ever!

Part 2 is all about creating zones for the contents of your pantry. What does it mean to "create zones?" Think about grocery shopping and how each aisle is organized by category of food. You will create categories of food in your pantry based on how you eat.

Zones = Categories

However, zones are customized for you. For example, in the store, peanut butter and bread are usually sold on separate aisles but you typically use them together. I've created a zone, sometimes with a basket or bin to contain them, for peanut butter, almond butter or other nut butters, jelly, jam, honey (depending on how the client eats it), and bread. This is to make it easier and....uncomplicated

No more searching multiple shelves or cabinets for the foods that go together. 

You store like foods together and thus a zone is born. 

Here are some examples of zones I've created. You don't need to create all of these. These are just examples that you might have in your pantry:

• Breakfast foods

• Pasta

• Grains & Legumes

• Canned food

• Meal starters

• Sauces & Condiments

• Chips

• Crackers

• Kids' snacks

• Adult snacks (usually stored on a higher shelf and contain yummy dark chocolate 😉)

• Bars

• Peanut butter, bread, & spreads

• Bottled water or Canned drinks

• Paper products

• Baking supplies

• Birthday supplies

• Smoothie ingredients

• Oils & Vinegars

When you go to create your own pantry zones,  it is usually best to take all of your food out of the pantry first. Then group like foods together.  This will give you an idea of how much space each zone takes up. You can use my list above to help you get started.

It's all about you so if you don't bake, you don't need a "baking supplies" zone. 

If you've got a household with food allergies or sensitivities, creating zones for specific food types would be helpful.

The goal here is to create the zones that work for you so that cooking and shopping are easier, less complicated for you. The fewer places you have to look for foods, the better your life will be.

Once you've created your zones, you can put them back in your pantry space grouped together. This is where baskets and bins can help as well as glass jars and other containers. Stay tuned for more on that!