• This Week: Clean out Equipment, Tools & Gadgets and More Deep Cleaning
• Time Left: 1 down, 3 weeks to go
• Cure Takers: 2,459
Week Two! I'm absolutely floored by how much progress you are making. Keep going; it'll be infinitely more satisfying as the weeks wear on.
Now that you have tackled your ingredients in the fridge and pantry, it's time to turn our attention to your equipment. Time to take a long honest look at the stuff in your cupboards and on your counters, from little things like flatware, to big appliances like the ice cream maker. Do you really use that George Foreman grill? Do you truly need three strainers?
Haven't joined yet? Say "yes" to the Kitchen Cure right here. (It's easy and free.) Now read on for this week's assignment.
Week 2 Assignment
- Take BEFORE and AFTER photos of your kitchen tools.
- De-clutter and purge.
- Deeply clean all surfaces.
We want to see the scene before you weed things out and then after you've sorted through it all. Show us your counter-tops, cupboards, drawers and other places you keep your kitchen tools and equipment. In the "before" shot, DO NOT clean things up for the camera. Submit them to the Flickr group and make sure to write captions for each image. Remember, submitting your photos to Flickr gives us permission to post them using the name you provide. (Here's info on how to upload your photos to Flickr) This enables us to learn from everyone's projects.
Make three categories: stuff you use regularly, stuff you use occasionally, and stuff you never use. It could be as small as a stray corn cob holder or as large as a KitchenAid mixer you got as a wedding gift and just don't use. Think about plastic food storage containers that don't have matching lids. Think about splintered wooden spoons. Ask yourself why you keep wine corks. Get into flatware and plates if you want. There must be things in there you don't need.
• In the case of stuff you use regularly: set it aside. It will be going back in the cupboards, but not before you wipe down all the surfaces.
• In the case of stuff you use occasionally (for me this is my ice cream maker, a grain grinder, knife sharpening stones, muffin tins), consider using spaces in the back of a cabinet. We often are asked how to maximize deep cupboards - here's your chance. Also consider boxing up some of these items - like special occasion dinnerware, seasonal things (margarita glasses? BBQ tools?) - labeled neatly and placed in the rear of deep cabinet or in a high place in the kitchen like above the refrigerator.
• In the case of stuff you never use, consider giving it away or selling it. I meet so many people who keep things in their kitchen that were given as gifts. This is your chance to take a leap, be bold, and get rid of those unused wedding gifts or things your bought because you thought you'd use them but you just don't. List them on on Craigslist. Believe me, someone wants your yogurt-maker. You don't need three grill pans. Be brave!
• As you go through your collection of kitchen tools, pull out duplicates. I find most people keep way too many pieces of plastic left-overs containers. Often tops and bottoms don't match. We know tongs are everyone's favorite tool, but you really only need one pair. Mixing bowls are another common offender. Small, medium and large is all you really need, right?
Take out anything else in the cupboards and on the counter tops and wipe it down with a warm, moist cloth. We encourage you to use earth-friendly products. For cutting through grease, vinegar and water works nicely. Check out this post on favorite cleaning products for the kitchen and this one on DYI Green Cleaning Solutions. Also, vacuum, dust, etc.; whatever you need to do to make it sparkle. Deeply clean all surfaces before returning your newly slimmed-down arsenal of cooking tools to its place.
Participate & Inspire!
Here are three ways you can participate in the online dialogue as you Cure your kitchen. Please do pitch in one or more ways — it is wonderful to be encouraged by other Cure-takers' progress and inspiration!
Share photos! - We want to see your progress!
• Upload photos on the Kitchen Cure Flickr page and please be sure to caption them. (Remember, by uploading them to Flickr you are granting us permission to use them in a post. Your kitchen just might be our next star!)
Discuss your progress - We set up a discussion board just for the Cure. If you're blogging the Kitchen Cure, this is a great place to post links and share them.
• Discuss your progress and share blog links here.
Send us questions - Got a really specific question about one of the Cure assignments?
• Send us a question and we'll post it as a Good Question.
Finally, a note on participation: Do your best, and pace yourself. You will have a week to complete each assignment. Each assignment will be given on a Friday so you have the weekend to dive in deep, although they can also be done in short bursts throughout the week, so don't panic if you're heading out of town for the weekend or would just prefer to laze about. Many assignments can be on-going throughout the duration of the Cure, so if you don't finish one week's work by the following Friday, just keep going.
(Top image: dpete22)
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REALLY looking forward to this week's assignment as this gives me the perfect excuse to wade through and organize the three drawers in my kitchen that contain various tools .
Yay! I am a week ahead- Now all I need to do post photos.
I already have my hand kitchen tools organized in two drawers: frequently used, and rarely used. I need to go through the rarely used drawer and throw stuff away, but it's a constant battle with the husband. "I've had that spatula for 12 years!" Grrrr.
I haven't uploaded any photos yet, but that's because I'm still working on the "after" There is so much to throw out/donate, etc. This has been so good for us. We finally threw out frozen breastmilk for baby. She's now 2 and has stopped drinking breastmilk 6 months ago! I can't wait to start this week.
ugh duckierose I know what you mean.
"Why do we have this thing?"
"it's a chicken lifter, came with the chicken!"
"It's a piece of string attached to two little pieces of plastic, who cares?"
"But it's perfectly useable!"
"But we didn't even use it when we had the chicken!"
"Well maybe we should get a chicken and use it!"
"Well maybe we could not be slaves to our junk!"
And so on. It's been two years and that stupid little piece of string still glares at me every time I open the drawer to dig through crap to find that one thing I always need. sigh.
I find a great way to figure out what you need and don't need is to sit somewhere other than the kitchen and make a list of all the things you use when you make meals that you can think of. "Big angled wooden spatula" "large green colander" "fancy chef's knife". When you're done putting down everything you can think of that you use, go back into the kitchen, put those items in a box and see what's left.
You will be AMAZED at the junk you hold on to that you don't even REMEMBER, let alone use...
This is the week that has me the most nervous. Throwing away an expired jar of olives is easy. The olives are no longer edible. But getting rid of a perfectly good, excellent quality gadget is torture. Technically, there's nothing wrong with it.
Don't worry, I'm still going through the exercise. It's just going to be a challenge.
Oh man, having it all laid out for all the interwebs to see really makes me cringe. (#3 and 10) I just found a whole bunch of canned food I labeled in October 2009. Such a waste.
I'm with ya mintychip1; I'm #7 on the list - the overcrowded utensil drawer. My only drawer in my lil eurokitchen. Looking for ideas about this too because its a furnished rental. I'd LOVE love love to install a metal bar with S-hooks, but alas, no holes can be made in the walls. :( What to do?
I just did that last week, because I had the time. I threw away duplicates, mismatching plates and a few worn out knifes.
My problem is to store my bigger appliances (I'm French, some translations may sound strange, my culinary vocabulary is not so good). I have this bread machine I use twice or thrice a week. The Thermomix cooking robot I love and cannot live without. My tiny herb mixer I use almost everyday. My vapor cooker (is that the name ?) I also use everyday. The toaster we sometimes use (I may give it away though).
If I put them on my counters, I have no counter space left. If I try to hide them in cupboards, they are cramped and hard to get out. Anyone solved this problem ?
I put all the 'company' dishes up in a top cabinet, and moved our 4 plates, 4 bowls (2 each large & small) to a smaller cabinet & shifted several large appliances off of open shelves, into the large cabinet formerly occupied by dishes.
Already washing dishes seems easier & the kitchen lighter.
Today I tackle the small tools, reamer, wine keys, etc.
Wow, that was not much fun AT ALL - 3 boxes to Goodwill, lots of cleaning - but I'm really glad it's done. I did skip a few small cabinets that I'll get to on Monday night, but the hard work is behind us and it felt good to cook Sunday dinner in such an organized kitchen!
I've been working on this and finding that I've already pared down a lot (a purge I did in the summer months!) ... areas for improvement are some still full cupboards, cluttered countertops, and the dreaded junk drawer. I may do away with that one all together. Keep tools only ... a couple of our regular-use cupboards could use a bit of a maintenance tidy. Got rid of a couple of things. I am struggling to clean off this greasy, sticky film on some cupboards. Vinegar didn't touch it. I'm about to try Goo Gone ... any other thoughts?
I use full strength Simple Green to cut through kitchen grease, @WriterSarah.
@Loora, we use a kitchen cart to store our extra appliances as we also have limited countertop space.
I'm at seven cabinets/drawers in with nine more to go.
Last week was great! Once I got going, I got excited and started working ahead, organizing other cabinets and drawers. How did I not notice how dirty my refrigerator was? Thanks again for the suggestion! Can't wait to get going this week. The kitchen cure feels awesome this year!
It's painful... I'm only 4 drawers in with 3 to go and 10 cabinets looming darkly on the horizon. Those few drawers were hard! And my shopping list is growing...
Marmite you are not alone...I feel overwhelmed by how much I have to do. I have to keep telling myself that slow and steady wins the race.