How To Organize A Deep Pantry - A Simplified Life

With a few inexpensive plastic bins and some smart organizing, your deep pantry can be functional and work for your lifestyle! Links updated October 2023.

When you have less than ten days to move across the state, you don’t have very much time to be picky about the apartment you’re moving into. When we toured the apartment we first lived in when we moved to DFW, I loved everything about it, except one thing.

It had a deep pantry.

You know the kind I’m talking about.

It’s more like a black hole with shelves:

Ugh. Just look at it.

If you have one, you know that things get pushed to the back, never to be found again.

You know you have to take out half the items in the shelf if you want something in the back.

You know that there seems to be no good way to keep it in order.

It might look something like this…

Keepin’ it real here, y’all. This is actually what my pantry looked like, and I knew I needed to figure out a system.

After about an hour of work, I had an organized deep pantry! Today I’m sharing my tips and tricks that will help you go from what you see above to what you see below!

How to Organize A Deep Pantry

First, Invest in some clear organization bins.

The longer the better. This will allow you to group items together. You simply slide out the bin to grab what you need, then slide it back in. No more pulling out jars and cans, clutching them in your arms while trying to grab something out of the back. These bins will totally transform your pantry by making it functional.

I found mine at HomeGoods for $4.99 each. These and these are similar in style. Buy extra, and what you don’t use you can always return. I put some in the fridge for my meal-prepped snacks. You also want them to be clear so you can see what’s inside them!

Take Everything Out

Clear off the counters and take everything out of your pantry.

Next, wipe it down with a damp cloth or food-safe cleaner. You need a clean slate to start with! You can use this time to toss anything old or expired, too. Look over the food items you have and group like items together.

The most important part of organizing your pantry is that you want it to be functional. Think of the items you use the most, as you want them to be front and center. An organized pantry is no good if it doesn’t work for your life.

For example, I made one bin full of “toppings”, like honey, chia seeds, flax seeds, almonds, cacao nibs, my favorite grain-free granola, etc. I use these weekly for smoothies and oatmeal, so I needed it to be easily accessible.

First Things First

The first thing you need to do is decide what goes to the back of your pantry.

You can put the tallest items in the back, or the things you use less frequently. I opted to put tall things in the back as I can see them over the bins.

Pantry Storage

Next, slide your bins in. I chose to keep them on the edges and fill them with similar items. You could fill one bin with your kids’ snacks and put it low in the pantry for them to find easily.

If you need more storage, you can always take advantage of the aerial space by putting in under-the-shelf storage solutions, seen in the picture above. That specific one is meant for K-Cups, but I keep straws there for easy access with my morning smoothies. These are some similar ones from Amazon.

Another space hack is to combine similar items in a container. I used this cereal storage to combine pastas, rice and quinoa. There’s another one that has all my chocolate chips and cookie mix-ins. You could do this with dried fruits, cereals/granolas, anything! By tossing the big pasta boxes, you save a big amount of space. Remember, tall storage options are your friend.

Finish Up

Lastly, slide in the things you use most often. For us, that is chia seeds, a food scale, apple cider vinegar, and coffee. An odd assortment, I know! This way the things we use the most are easily accessible.

With a few organization bins and some smart organizing, your deep pantry can be totally functional and work for your lifestyle! Do you have any tips to help you organize your pantry? Share them below!

Thanks for reading,

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