Home Organizing Kitchen Organizing How to Organize Your Food Storage Supplies Once and for All Whip up smart solutions for food storage supplies with these creative tips. By Stephanie Sisco Stephanie Sisco Stephanie researches and reports on solutions for cleaning, organizing, and decorating challenges. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Updated on April 19, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Bryan Gardner You might debate the pros and cons of clear pantry storage containers. But when it comes to organizing food storage, a more fundamental problem often crops up: With only so much cabinet space, where do you put all of your food storage containers? Between the sandwich bags, the tin foil, the plastic Tupperware bins, and the glass food containers, how do you put it all in order? It's a common kitchen organization dilemma: When you open the cabinet door, an avalanche of plastic food storage containers comes tumbling out. Or maybe the search for a matching lid to a container results in an hour-long scavenger hunt. Despite your best organization efforts, it's all too easy for bulky, mismatched food containers to make a mess of your kitchen cabinets. If you're determined to learn how to organize your food storage containers, these tips from Samantha Pregenzer, founder of SO | Home Professional Organizing, can help. Keeping everything in one area makes prepping lunch and packing leftovers more streamlined and can even make your space feel more relaxing. Here's how to stash everything so it's easy to grab what you need. What You'll Need Materials 1 Shallow drawer 1 Deep drawer or cabinet Instructions How to Organize Your Food Storage Supplies Create a Station for Foils, Wraps, and Papers Your kitchen space will dictate what your particular station will look like. Here are some options: Reserve a shallow drawer for boxes of foil, cling wrap, and wax paper. To make more room, remove sandwich bags from their boxes and sort them by size between dividers like OXO Good Grips Expandable Dresser Drawer Divider ($20 for 2; amazon.com). You'll easily see when the bags need to be replenished. Keep these items in an organizing rack ($25, amazon.com) inside a kitchen cabinet. If you have shelves inside your kitchen cabinets, store these items in an under-shelf wrap holder ($17, amazon.com). Hang food storage wraps on removable rods inside a cabinet door. Punch out the tabs on the ends of each box and slide the whole thing over the rod. Stash wraps in a magazine file box ($12; amazon.com) positioned on its spine. Pull Out and Sort All Your Plastic and Glass Containers Put everything on the counter so you can decide what to keep. Set aside the containers you haven't used in the last six months for donation or recycling. Also, get rid of any containers without matching lids. (Chances are, they are in the "haven't used them" category, anyway.) Turning your attention to the containers you will keep, group similar ones together, stacking them inside one another. (All one brand together, all one size together, etc.) Never store containers with lids on them, which is a waste of space. Generally, don't stack more than four. If possible, stick to the same brand of storage container (such as the Joseph Joseph Nest Plastic Food Storage Containers Set) to ensure the pieces nest well. When purchasing new containers, avoid buying the variety pack. Instead, select the individual sizes you'll reach for most often. Dedicate a Deep Drawer or Cabinet for Containers and Lids Place stacks of containers in groups based on size. Enlist a cabinet shelf insert ($16, amazon.com) to create space for different-sized containers. Stack lids (organized by size) vertically inside one container or bin. Consider investing in a lid organizer ($15, amazon.com). This space-saving lid collector ($30, amazon.com) slides over a cabinet door. The 12 Best Glass Food Storage Containers of 2023