Organizing My Multitude of Spices

For years, I happily have my spice drawer to the left of the stove, where I can easily access what I need for cooking. Being the primary cook in the family, the spices are a manageable size and scope. Then my children and husband start creating and cooking in the kitchen, and next thing I know, I have so many more spices in multiple size containers. They spill out into two other cabinets and quite frankly, it’s hard to find what you need in a timely manner. Here are the steps I take to organize my multitude of spices.

Assess Your Space

Having three or four areas to search for spices is not very efficient. In order to find something, I am taking all the jars out and looking in the back of the shelves. Often times there are spices stacked on the counter or on a shelf over my head.

I finally decide to convert a lower cabinet by adding a pull out drawer for ALL the spices. This cabinet is still to the left of the cooktop and easily accessible. Currently, the cabinet has a pull out drawer on the bottom (which holds dry pasta and rice) and a shelf above that is stuffed with who knows what. This becomes the perfect place to replace the shelf with a spice-specific pull out drawer.

Resources for pull out drawers

Typically, the least expensive way to accomplish designing a pull out drawer is to ask someone who is handy to make one to fit. For months, I did ask our contractor, but it was low on his list of priorities and it never got done. There are several resources from Home Depot, The Container Store, IKEA to Amazon to get pull out cabinet organizers in different materials~wood, metal baskets, plastic, etc.

Since our cabinets are custom sizes I have a drawer I design online through The Cabinet Door Store. Built in the USA, the drawer is made to your size with hardwood sides, dovetail corners and can be mounted either on the sides or an under mount. It takes about 3-4 weeks from order to delivery. You also have the option to have them assemble it or you can save a few dollars and assemble it yourself.

We have our contractor install it as it does require a side mount. The drawer is solid birch and it does not match the drawer below, but who cares. It is all hidden behind the door anyway.

Selecting Spice Containers

On Amazon, I find these spice jars from AOZITA. This set has 36 glass spice jars with spice labels. The jars are 4oz and square shaped. Each has a shaker lid and an airtight metal cap. In addition to a large selection of labels there is a chalk marker and blank labels for unique spices. Filling the jars is rather easy with the included silicone collapsible funnel.

Much to my surprise, I go through 36 jars quickly and I need more jars. Fortunately, I can buy in lesser quantities and find the same set with 14 jars.

Spices~ Fresh or Old?

Spices have a shelf life so it is easy to toss the ones with obvious expiration dates. But when should you throw out spices?

According to the internet: whole spices are at their freshest within the first 10 months of being bottled. Ground spices retain most of their flavor for 2-3 years. Whole spices retain most of their flavor for 3-4 years. Spice blends retain most of their flavor for 2 years.

How do you know if spices are too old?

Ground spices lose their freshness the quickest and typically don’t last past six months. The best freshness test for ground spices is to give them a whiff — if they smell like nothing, then it’s time to say goodbye. Whole spices, on the other hand, can be fine for up to five years.

Of course, storing spices in cool, dark places will help retain their freshness.

Spices~Organized and Accessible

My husband has a smoker and he buys all sorts of spices for smoking meats. However, he buys them in huge containers, which are difficult to store. The newly bottled spices take up about 2/3 of my drawer, so his taller, bigger containers fit in the back.

All the jars are in alphabetical order and now I can easily see each and every spice that we own! I feel like this project will definitely save time and frustration going forward. All that wasted time and energy hunting for a little jar of something.

In Summary

Now I am using the smaller upper cabinet to house cookbooks I frequently use.

I did not think to measure the spice jars and determine an optimal fit in the newly designed drawer. Therefore I can fit 9 bottles in each row with a small space at the end. Right now the space works as it is large enough for me to fit my finger there and pull the drawer out. If it fit tightly I would probably need to add a handle or pull to the front.

Make sure you take into account the height of the bottles and the room inside your cabinet. I am still able to use the bottom drawer for pasta and rice; while the top drawer can handle the taller, larger spice containers.

This is the final project to my complete kitchen cabinet organization/cleaning project and I can say I am so happy it is COMPLETED!

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