🗃Kitchen Organizing 102 – Spice Rack

Yeah, that sounds great when you see it on some collectible in a gift shop, but we’re all struggling with real life and don’t have time setup our kitchens. The daily grind of taking care of the family, running the house, working, and generally being pummeled against the grist mill of life wears us down and sucks the energy right out of you. Am I right?

But like all those irritating collectibles, there’s a grain of truth to this one.

So in my quest to help you get a little better every day, here’s my take on how to stock and arrange your spice cabinet so that you can be a tiny bit more efficient. Of course, it’s going to take some rethinking and you may have to train your family to actually stick with the plan, but if you succeed you’ll reap benefits every time you cook!

I’ve written before about my Mom’s spice rack. Nothing was ever really out of place because, frankly, she had so few spices. On the other hand, I’ve got an entire cabinet full of spices! This is one case where the nut didn’t fall close to the tree whatsoever…I’m a totally different type of cook. But having all those spices does have a downside. It’s a pain to find the ones I want to use. Over the years I’ve devised a plan that works for me.

I do a lot more cooking than I do baking. So the lower shelf has my savory spices. Essentially, spices that are used in a particular cuisine or type of cooking are all huddled together.

All the salt and pepper variations are grouped together. Plain salt, rock salt, kosher salt, seasoned salt, and pink salt sit side-by-side. Fine black pepper, coarse black pepper, red pepper flakes, cayenne, and lemon-pepper reside right next door. When I’m looking for salt of pepper, they’re easy to find. Since garlic and onion are also staples in my cooking, I’ve got onion powder and minced onion right next to garlic powder and minced garlic. In my brain, the Italian spices come up next including chives, cilantro, oregano, Italian herbs, and paprika.

The Simon and Garfunkel spices. You know, 🎶 Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme 🎶. Heck, you’ve got to have some fun in the kitchen, right?

My Mexican spices round out that layer of the lazy susan with chili powder, cumin, and mapuche spice. See, I told you I have some exotic spices!

The second tier of spices are from the same cuisine as their cousins on the lower level. So basil sits behind the oregano while dill and dill weed reside near the lemon pepper.

The upper lazy susan houses baking items including all extracts, like vanilla, almond, brandy, and almond. Next comes mint, cinnamon powder, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, pumpkin pie spice, and apple pie spice. I round out that tier with lemon peel and orange peel along with Cream of Tartar (somewhat of a mystery to me…I use it when it’s called for, but I honestly don’t really understand it).

One trick I learned for my lazy susan’s was having a single tier was a waste of space. For years I struggled with how to use the inner space effectively. Eventually I stumbled upon using round styrofoam discs. I’ve stacked two discs stacked to create a inner tier, and then another pair of smaller discs make a third. Implementing this solution helped make my spices more visible and dramatically improved my ability to find specific spices.

The bottom line is organizing your spices into groups that make sense to you is your best bet. Think about how you search for a spice and what spices are related. Then put those spices together. Not only is it easier to find your spices, you’ll also know where to put them when it’s time to repopulate the rack!

How do you organize your spice rack? Have you even thought about it? I’d love to hear how you work with your spice rack in the comments.

As always, you can save a little bit of time every day with a small amount of organization. It’s just another way to make it a great day in the kitchen!