The problem I have is that the spices are in many different size and shape jars (e.g., sugar is in a 24-oz canning jar, thyme in a “standard” spice jar, white pepper in a smaller oddly-shaped plastic jar, ginger in a taller jar, cinnamon in a large Costco jar, etc.). I use a spreadsheet to keep track of where everything is, though I have an idea where the frequently used stuff is.
Most are in small, labeled glass jars organized in the “where the f*** did I put the…?” way. Ah, well, apparently there’s always hope.
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I put all my spices in a sack, shake it up good, then dump them into a drawer. Or at least that’s what you would think if you saw my spice drawer.
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I got new spices,
and I’m taking another stab at organizing my spice cupboard, hoping to try more and waste less.
I just bought these
To go here, where you see the white bottles…
But it’s not working out, so I’m leaving them th
in the drawer, and ordered this from Etsy
And put it here. It’s made on a 3 D printer! Fingers crossed on the fit.
It will look better, but I wouldn’t call it organized for my goal of trying new things. Anyone with advice or updates?
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Did those spice jars with the white lids come from a Container Store spice rack? They look like ones I used to have.
A trick that worked for me was to move all my spices into identical jars, which allowed me to have a single system with all jars fitting exactly, and one color so it looks uniform. Some of my spices came in bags or larger jars, so for those I put what would fit in the jar and then put the extra in freezer ziplock bags so they can lay flat. All freezer ziplock bags go into 2 plastic shoeboxes which sit at the top of my pantry in an area that’s hard to reach. Every now and then I refill my jars from the shoeboxes.
Shoeboxes for extras, top-right shelf:
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Did those spice jars with the white lids come from a Container Store spice rack?
I don’t remember, but this is the carousel, which still feels really solid, but doesn’t fit well in the pantry.
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Perhaps you’re like me: I hate to get rid of an unused spice rack because I’m sure that as soon as I drop it off at the charity shop I’ll think of a perfect use for them! My spice racks that used similar white-lidded jars are acrylic Copco ones. I have two, in a nice shade of blue, and no idea how to repurpose them…
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Store socks or undies in them. Or toiletries/makeup.
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Nails, screws, etc. in the garage.
Buttons, snaps, spools of thread, etc.
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I used to use the cute metal spice containers I brought at World Market. I stopped when the spices started sticking in the rims, making it impossible for me to open.
I then switched to glass Libbey spice jars that Deb on Smitten Kitchen uses, very happy with them. I use a Brother label maker in clear
**
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I’d call my method Slightly Organized Chaos. I had a vision of using mostly Oui yogurt jars with purchased wooden lids - but ran out of jars and lids.
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Not home right now, but it’s a rather woeful display.
Some of the containers are miniature, some are test tube-like, and one is rather corpulent.
I don’t have so many that it’s unwieldly to arrange them in some way. OTOH, I once mistakenly put pimentón on my Cracklin’ Oat Bran cereal, so I should probably get to arranging them.
What motivates me to grow the spices and herbs rack is noting the countries/events where I obtained some of them.
One example–I used to go to an event called the Summer Fancy Food Show (in NYC); it’s a spectacle. Anyway, both Iceland and the Republic of Korea provided me with two very different salt mixes that I still use seven years later.
Another – owing to my chronic need to add something spicy to dishes, I am remiss about having gone through a giant container of ground cabe rawit (Indonesian for bird’s eye chili) in about 10 days. Whoops.
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I’ve got a bunch of lazy susans in a cabinet above my prep area. The spices are mostly alphabetical.
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I have double-decker lazy Susans, but no alphabetizing, though I do try to keep “exotic” or “special use” spices on one turntable stack - without actually defining them. Won’t get into that battle …
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A woeful collection these days, since I’m not always around these here parts.
Comingling with the way too inexpensive black pepper are:
Íslensk hollusta seaweed salt (sprinkle that on a beefsteak tomato for some brilliance)
Manantial de las flores chili flakes (but obviously the jar has been reused for … anyone? ground Japanese sesame seeds; from Xalapa, Mexico)
Yawata Isogoro shichimi togarashi (the red can-- Japanese seven spice blend from Nagano prefecture)
Korean alkali salt
The Spice Hunter Fiery Chile Fusion (yet this time, it isn’t remotely hot:/)
Terana thyme (Mexico)
Another shimichi togarashi
Yuzu salt
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Calloo callay, I’ve found some Fresh Harvest ground chiltepín, burrowed deep in the pantry treasure box.
That’s eclectic! I think…
I may have missed the “giant container of ground cabe rawit (Indonesian for bird’s eye chili)”
I see
Íslensk hollusta seaweed salt- from Icelandic…
Manantial de las flores- Spanish from Mexico?
Yawata Isogoro shichimi togarashi- “a common Japanese seasoning”
Korean alkali salt- I’m guessing Korean
Calloo callay-? ETA from Lewis Carroll’s poem Jabberwocky, apparently also the origin of chortle, one of my favorite words ever!
Jabberwocky is a classic. That one is always front of mind.
Ah, I mentioned before the photo that I had finished the cabe rawit too soon!
Yep, Manantial de las Flores is from Xalapa – ehh, bought it in Coatepec, a big coffee area – both are in Veracruz-Llave state, Mexico.
Coincidentally, I saw the Yawata Isogoro at a few Japanese food stores in NYC. I like it, but not enough to go at it again.
Now, if they had Kanzuri Habanero, a spicy condiment from Niigata prefecture, then that would be neat.
Are you saying you threw away the container?
