I’m passionate about minimizing food waste, and keeping my fridge organized has been a game-changer in achieving this goal. By maintaining an orderly fridge, I’ve found that my food stays fresh longer, which ultimately reduces the amount of food I end up throwing away.
Discover essential tools and practical tips to organize your fridge and keep your food fresher for longer. Follow these step-by-step guidelines to transform your fridge into an efficient, food-preserving haven.
Table of Contents
Step 1: Start with a Clean Slate
Empty Your Fridge Entirely
To conserve energy, if your fridge requires some serious scrubbing and/or the shelves are not removable, first unplug it from the wall before emptying. If you don’t unplug it, make sure to close the doors between steps.
Then, take everything out of the fridge and toss the following items:
- Fruit and vegetables that have gone rotten.
- Anything that is expired, including non-food items such as nutritional supplements.
- Leftovers that are more than four days old.
If you have any items in the fridge that aren’t expired yet, but you’ve only used a couple of times and are confident that you’ll probably never use them again, consider donating them to a friend! Think specialty items such as the Asian stir-fry sauce or curry paste you purchased to make that one recipe you saw on TikTok.
Lastly, if you previously put some baking soda in the fridge to eliminate funky odors or just to keep your fridge smelling fresh, toss it if it has been in your fridge for more than three months! By now, it has lost its effectiveness.
Give Your Fridge a Good Clean
Once your fridge is empty, give it a serious scrub if necessary. Wipe down the interior walls and shelves with warm soapy water and a clean cloth.
Don’t forget to wipe down the outside of the fridge and rubber seals as well.
After that, you can also use the vacuum cleaner with the brush attachment to clean the condenser fan! Cleaning your condenser fan is easily neglected, but it is very important to allow your fridge to operate efficiently.
Finally, leave the door open to air out before plugging it back in. Now you have a clean canvas to work with!
Keeping a clean fridge is essential for maintaining the freshness and quality of your food. A clean fridge minimizes the risk of cross-contamination, where bacteria from spoiled or raw foods can spread to fresh items, causing them to spoil faster. Additionally, regular cleaning removes any lingering odors that can be absorbed by other foods, altering their taste and smell. By ensuring your fridge is spotless, you create an optimal environment for preserving your produce, extending its shelf life and reducing food waste. A tidy fridge also makes it easier to see and access your items, ensuring you use them before they spoil.
Step 2: Essential Tools for Maximizing Fridge Freshness
Install an Enhanced Carbon Filter
Are you frustrated with produce spoiling before you can enjoy it? There’s a fantastic solution on the market: enhanced carbon filters.
Produce often spoils quickly due to ethylene gas, a natural hormone released by fruits and vegetables that accelerates ripening. This gas is both emitted and reabsorbed by produce, leading to faster spoilage. Enhanced carbon filters absorb ethylene gas, effectively slowing down the aging process of your produce. Simply place one in your crisper drawer and say goodbye to prematurely rotten fruits and veggies!
Use a Fridge Thermometer
Maintaining the right temperature in your fridge is crucial for keeping your food fresh and safe to eat. A fridge thermometer is an essential tool for ensuring that your refrigerator stays at the optimal temperature.
By using a fridge thermometer, you can monitor the temperature precisely and adjust your fridge settings as needed. The ideal fridge temperature is between 1.6°C to 3.3°C (35°F and 38°F). Keeping your fridge within this range helps prevent bacterial growth, which can spoil your food and lead to foodborne illnesses. It also ensures that your produce and other perishables stay fresh for as long as possible.
Using a fridge thermometer is simple: just place it in the center of your fridge and check it regularly. This small investment can make a big difference in maximizing the freshness and longevity of your food.
Step 3: Utilize Refrigerator Zones
Organizing your fridge into specific zones for different types of foods is a key strategy for maintaining freshness and extending the shelf life of your groceries. Designating areas for fruits and vegetables, dairy alternatives, and leftovers or meal preps helps create optimal storage conditions for each food category.
Crisper Drawers for Fruits and Vegetables
Crisper drawers are designed to maintain higher humidity levels, which is ideal for preserving the freshness of fruits and vegetables. Higher humidity prevents produce from drying out and becoming wilted. By keeping fruits and vegetables in these dedicated drawers, you can ensure they stay crisp and fresh for longer periods.
Dairy Alternatives on a Designated Shelf
Dairy alternatives, like plant-based milks, yogurts, and cheeses, should be stored on a specific shelf. This not only makes them easy to locate but also keeps them at a consistent temperature. Fluctuating temperatures can accelerate spoilage, so keeping these items on a middle or lower shelf where the temperature is more stable helps maintain their quality.
Leftovers and Meal Preps on Another Shelf
Designate a separate shelf for leftovers and meal preps to prevent cross-contamination and ensure they are consumed in a timely manner. Placing them at eye level or in a clearly designated area makes them easily accessible, reducing the likelihood of them being forgotten and spoiling.
Step 4: Optimal Food Storage Techniques
How to Store Cut Herbs
If you don’t grow your own herbs at home, and purchase a weekly bundle from the store, you might struggle to keep them fresh throughout the week. However, it is quite easy to keep them fresh in the fridge. The best way to do this is to rinse the herbs in cold water, then pat them completely dry with a paper towel. Once the herbs are dry, wrap them in a damp (paper) towel and place them in a sealed reusable silicone bag or airtight container. This will help them stay moist and fresh for longer.
Tip: If you do a lot of meal prep, like me, herbs can help you add extra freshness to prepared meals before serving them.
How To Store Fruits
Berries
Generally, washing fruit before storage accelerates their deterioration, but most berries are an exception to this rule. To make strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries last and not go soft and moldy quickly, you should wash them in a diluted vinegar bath. A vinegar bath helps destroy bacteria and mold spores on the berries.
Grapes, which are berries too, require being pulled off their vine to stop the ripening process and thus last longer. Wash them with water, baking soda, and salt so they are ready to eat too.
Related: How To Meal Prep Fruit For The Week
Make sure to thoroughly rinse and dry your berries (including grapes) after washing. Then store them in glass jars!
Yes, it takes some effort to store berries properly, but not only will it help them last longer they will also be ready to eat whenever you are ready to eat them. It helps save time throughout the week and makes eating fruit SO much more convenient.
Other Fruit
Generally, fruits should be kept in the fridge once they have ripened, to keep them from spoiling.
Fruits like apples, avocados, and bananas can stay on the counter. However, if you plan on eating them later in the week, storing them in the crisper drawer of the fridge will help preserve their freshness for longer.
How To Store Vegetables
Vegetables to Keep Out of the Fridge
Generally, it is best to not store vegetables like potatoes, squashes, onions, garlic, and tomatoes in the fridge. These types of vegetables do not store well in the cold temperature of the refrigerator and will often become wilted and lose their flavor. Instead, keep these vegetables in a cool, dry place with good air circulation.
Lettuce
The best way to store lettuce in the fridge, and keep it fresh for as long as possible is to keep it humid in the fridge, while also making sure it receives enough air circulation. Wash it, spin it dry, and then store it in a colander or a perforated salad container that allows for air circulation. Place the container in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator. This should keep the lettuce fresh for up to two weeks.
Asparagus & Spring Onion
If you are not going to be using your asparagus or spring onion on the day that you purchase them, try storing them in water until you are ready to use them. Place them upright in a glass or jar half filled with water. Cover the tips with a reusable silicone bag, so they don’t dry out.
Mushrooms
In the refrigerator, mushrooms should be stored in a paper bag or reusable produce bag. Avoid storing them in anything airtight because it will trap the evaporating moisture from the mushrooms and they will end up discolored, moldy, or slimy. Let them breathe to keep them fresh. Only wash them (thoroughly) before use.
Other Vegetables
Most other vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, celery, cabbage, cucumber, eggplant, peppers, etc. should be stored in the crisper drawer of the fridge. This is where they will stay fresh and last the longest.
How To Store Tofu
If you buy vacuum-packed tofu, you should store it in the fridge in its original packaging until it’s time to use it.
If you buy freshly made tofu, store it in an airtight container filled with filtered water – enough to completely submerge the tofu. This water should be discarded and refilled every other day to keep the tofu fresh. When you follow this method, your tofu should stay fresh for up to five days in the fridge.
How To Store Prepared Meals And Leftovers
Store your prepared meals or leftovers as often as possible in glass or stainless steel airtight containers! You can find the links to the meal prep containers I recommend on the VMPS Shop Page. It is really worth it to invest in high-quality containers because they make a noticeable difference in the quality and freshness of your meals throughout the week.
Prepared foods maintain their freshness and quality for up to four days in the refrigerator and up to 6 months in the freezer, according to the FDA (U.S. Food & Drug Administration).
Step 5: Proactive Planning and Preparation
Prep for Success
If you know you are going to have a busy week, make sure to do some meal prepping to make sure none of your produce goes to waste.
Meal prepping means preparing meals ahead of time. It involves preparing and/or cooking ingredients or entire meals in advance.
There’s no one way to prep. Depending on your lifestyle and what works for you, there are different approaches to meal prep:
- Prep raw and freeze: prep all your ingredients for a dish, and freeze them, ready to cook them later.
- Batch cook and freeze: cook a large batch of soup, or stew, and freeze for later.
- Individual meals prep: prepare food and portion it in single-serving containers.
- Ingredient prep: just prep ingredients ahead of time so that meal assembly is faster.
Conclusion
Organizing your vegan kitchen, especially your refrigerator, can significantly reduce food waste and keep your plant-based foods fresh for longer. By following these tips, you can create a more efficient and enjoyable cooking environment. Remember, a well-organized fridge not only helps in preserving your food but also makes meal preparation a breeze.
Did you find this post helpful? Don’t forget to let me know by leaving a comment below.
Love, Lien x