Save Time with an Organized Kitchen
Food prep takes a long time – a big chuck out of your day. No wonder we are so inclined to go out for dinner, instead of staying home.
By working more efficiently you will save small amounts of time. But those minutes really add up when combined to achieve your goal of sitting down to a family dinner. Click To Tweet
Here are some tips to help you save time in the kitchen while still providing a home-cooked meal.
- Double the amount you cook and freeze half of it to make a second meal.
- Cook dinners in a crockpot so the vegetables and meat cook while you’re at work.
- Plan meals a week ahead of time and includes the necessary items on your shopping list.
- Use foil whenever possible to speed up cleaning afterward.
- If you use plastic containers for leftovers, consider having only one size to eliminate having to match tops with bottoms.
- Arrange all the tools and ingredients on the counter before beginning to cook to save time on meal prep.
- Use transparent containers for leftovers so you can see what you have in the refrigerator.
- Keep similar types of foods in certain areas, so it’s easy to locate everything.
By working more efficiently you will save small amounts of time. But those minutes really add up when combined to achieve your goal of sitting down to a family dinner.
If your challenge is having the right tools for the kitchen job, but not overdoing it and having more than you need, read this article, called 10 Kitchen Organizing Essentials You Need, from Sabrina’s Organizing.
Do you have any kitchen time management tips that you’d like to share?
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Janet Schiesl
Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.
She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.
Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.
Janet Schiesl
Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.
She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.
Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.
The kitchen is my favorite room to organize. I always talk with clients about doing the NOT time-sensitive parts of dinner whenever you can. For example, go ahead and set the table while the kids are at school (if you don’t need it for homework), or as you say, do the chopping of ingredients so you can throw it all together like they do on TV. I am a TRUE BELIEVER in the “use foil” approach. This definitely saves a lot of time!
I love the foil tips too. I hate scrubbing pans.
Planning meals a week at a time saves time because you’re not constantly running to the grocery store. Also, doing a little food prep in advance cuts down the amount of time you spend when actually cooking dinner. I agree with Seana, organizing the kitchen is one of my favorite places to work with a client as that organization impacts so much of what happens in the home.
Hi Diane. I like to prep right after I get home from the grocery store. I look at it as part of the grocery shopping project. You’re right, the kitchen is the hub of a home and being organized there can benefit everyone in the home.
Janet, I promise I love these tips. They’re super helpful and a few I haven’t thought of:
Use foil when ever possible to speed up cleaning afterwards. ( I DO THIS AND IT REALLY DOES HELP!)
If you use plastic containers for leftovers, consider having only one size to eliminate having to match tops with bottoms. (THIS IS SO SMART!)
Arrange all the tools and ingredients on the counter before beginning to cook to save time on meal prep.
( I’VE DONE THIS FOR SERVING. I’M NOW INSPIRED TO DO THE SAME FOR PREP.)
THANK YOU!😀
Thanks Ronni. I hope the tips help you.
Great tips, Janet! I have to share this story with you. I usually have clear containers to hold leftovers. But, recently, I purchased white casserole containers. My kids couldn’t find the leftovers. LOL. I had to tell them to open the container to see what was inside. Apparently, it was too difficult for them to do that. They continued to advise me that there should be a label describing what is inside – that is not going to happen. =/
It was a nice surprise to see my post listed here. Thanks for sharing it! =)
Thank you Sabrina. My kids used to do the same. They “couldn’t see” the containers of leftovers.
Organizing kitchens is one of my favorite rooms to work in. It’s often the hub of the house. Having well-placed items and zones help keep these spaces organized and easier to use. I love the tips you shared, especially the cooking extras part. A few other things I like to do is prepare containers of cut raw vegetables. When it’s time to make a salad, it makes assembly easy. And having cut veggies also make good snacks. I also like to clean up as I cook, instead of waiting until the end. There is always waiting and cooking time when making and baking, which is a great time to clean the pans, pots, and counters.
Great time management tips.
Cooking is something I’ve always enjoyed as my trade/skill/hobby. I’ve never thought to go for a more uniform size storage container for left overs. That would certainly make life in the kitchen easier and more efficient! Thanks for sharing today.
Thanks Melanie. I started using the same sized storage containers when my boys were teenagers. Everything was a leftover that didn’t last long, so the containers I used were one serving size.
As I don’t cook, I’m occasionally flummoxed by a unitasker in the kitchen (though clients have often also forgotten what a particular gizmo is for), but I do love organizing in kitchens and pantries. Your advice is absolutely on-point for saving time and being more efficient in the kitchen. And I could not agree MORE about foil. (And, as always, your blog video is a delight.)
Why thank you Julie. I also love organizing kitchens and pantries.