How do you organise your larder cupboard?

[sammyspoon]

I'm really lucky that I have a pretty big cupboard dedicated to larder type stuff. About a metre wide with double doors from waist height to ceiling with 4 shelves. It's not ridiculously deep - maybe 30 cm. Also a big drawer underneath that. So I'm absolutely not struggling for space but it is constantly a bloody awful mess of tins and jars in various places, open packets etc. I'm never too sure what's in there.
Does anyone have any great tips for how they organise their larder / pantry cupboard?

I have a some of those stepped can/spice organisers for cans. I group like things into clear containers - so all baking stuff is in a couple of tubs as are spare sauces, condiments etc etc. Herbs and spices again, all together in one tub. I decant bulk like flour and rice in to lock and lock tubs (I'd love kilner jars but that ain't happening). I also have a couple of wire baskets that hang from the shelves with stuff that often varies . Current stuff such as tomato sauce, salt and pepper, marmalade I have in one of those turntable tubs - quite high sided so they don't fall out.

Stepped shelves at the back for tins and things and then these really sturdy Dunelm baskets at the front containing all the other stuff, sorted by food 'genre'.

Definitely buy large storage containers and label as previous poster said- it is the way forward. - I put all items that would otherwise be open packets- flour I have big ones that will hold 2 bags ( I do a lot of baking), sugars in smaller ones along with things like cocoa. All my rices and pastas have their own containers .
In truth when the kids were very little I couldn’t afford no e storage containers so I saved up all my follow on milk tins and bought some sticky backed plastic to cover them in. I have literally just thrown out the last of those tins some 26 years later ! It worked brilliantly
I put oil bottles all together in a shallow Tupperware box so they don’t get the shelves oily. Herbs/spices in drawers on their sides - never shelves- again as a keen cook I have a lot. Tins I then stack in a sort of order of tomato, beans ( multi sorts), fruit, fish together so I know I am looking on left side even if I have to go to the back. My shelf is positioned so I can get 2 standard cans on top of each other of same item. Similarly I align things like vinegars, soy sauces and other condiments together like that so I know where I’ll find them.

Any chance you could fit some drawers in place of the shelves? You can buy drawers in various widths online. I’ve shifted to using pan drawers for food and it’s revolutionary, I can see and reach everything. Just cereals and a few tall bottles need to go elsewhere.

Should say if you have kids who cook and bake (mine did) then you are on a slightly loosing battle probably to keep things in nice rows in an organised way. I live on my own now so where I put them, there they stay🤣

Buy a Lazy Susan and put all the oils/condiments on that at the front of one of the shelves.

Just give it a spin and it is easy to quickly find what you need.

@Dartfordwarblerautumn

Should say if you have kids who cook and bake (mine did) then you are on a slightly loosing battle probably to keep things in nice rows in an organised way. I live on my own now so where I put them, there they stay🤣

This is my problem! They actually put empty packets back in the cupboard! Maybe I just need to chill out for a few years then organise it properly once they've left home.

I think less is more with organising food. It's a bit like filing, any system I attempt ends up far too complicated. If DH doesn't understand it, it's doomed to failure.

We ended up swapping our pantry food into the smaller cupboards and using the big, floor to ceiling, 30cm deep one for crockery and glasses. Cereals and juices also live there so it's simple for the kids to grab breakfast It's fab, it makes emptying the dishwasher much simpler. Food lives in high cupboards with labelled shelves for different things like savoury tins & pulses, sweet tins, cook in sauces, snacks. Baking stuff is all piled into a big deep drawer which keeps it all contained. I find this works so much better than shelves and is simple for the kids to navigate (but a deep bin like a trofast box would also do the job). I have another drawer for pasta, rice, potatoes and onions.

I use storage baskets bought mainly from Wilko which keep the smaller items together, and can be brought out to clean and tidy easily