How To Organize Your Dishes, Silverware, And Utensils

How To Organize Your Dishes, Silverware, And Utensils

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First of all, you only need two sets of dishes (everyday and entertaining) and if you don't have young children at home, you can probably get away with one set (high quality everyday dishes). The same goes for silverware (knives, forks, and spoons).

A big part of the reason that most people are so short on cabinet space is that they store many things that they rarely, if ever, use. If some of those rarely used items are heirlooms you could never consider giving away, then either pack them in neatly labeled boxes for safekeeping or pass them along to another family member.

If you do it correctly, you shouldn't have to organize your cabinets more than once a year. So, yes, this is going a take a couple hours, but you'll feel good about yourself and all the nice things you own when you're finished.

Place Settings (Dishes) and Silverware
Reconstruct the sets. Count and record how many pieces you have of each item. Ideally, you should have at least four more place settings than there are people living in your household. A place setting consists of at least a dinner plate, bowl, and salad/dessert plate. Now that you know what's missing, determine if you have enough complete place settings.

If you don't, then your next step is to see if you can replace what you're missing (hopefully you can go to the website of the store where you originally bought it). If your dishes are no longer manufactured, there are some great replacement sites online for out-of-stock dinnerware. These sites are expensive, though. If you originally paid $5 for a bowl, expect to pay over $20 for a replacement.

If you don't have enough complete place settings and replacing the missing pieces isn't an option, you have two choices, either make do with what you have or buy a new set. Don't throw your old dishes out or give them away, though. Old plates and bowls are great for camping, college dorms, and sending leftovers home with guests.

Once you're happy with the set you have, be sure that everything is sparkling clean and put it back in the cabinet. The cabinet you use for everyday dishes should be close to eye level.

Silverware
As with organizing dishes, you'll want to count how many pieces you have of each item---table knives, teaspoons, tablespoons, dinner forks, and salad/dessert forks. The difference between dishes and silverware, though, is that once you determine which pieces are missing, you'll find it easier to buy replacements. Silverware patterns tend to remain in stock much longer (decades even) than dish patterns. Even if you can't find your pattern, chances are you'll be able to find replacements in a pattern that is so close, no one will notice. This is why it pays to buy high quality silverware---even for everyday use.

The other nice thing about silverware is that most of it fits neatly into a drawer-organizing cutlery tray. Assuming you already have one, you'll want to take it out and clean it thoroughly before you put everything back. Most cutlery trays don't take up the entire drawer---there is usually some space in the back. This is a good place to put large serving pieces---which will also keep the cutlery tray from sliding back.

Utensils
Now, moving onto the utensil drawer. Hopefully it's neatly organized and you can access everything easily. But if you're like most people, this isn't the case. Most people put spatulas, whisks, serving pieces, and even sharp knives into the same drawer. Not only is this dangerous (it's a great way to accidentally slice through a couple of fingers) but it also leads to broken utensils and makes it difficult to find a critical tool in a pinch.

An alternative to putting everything in a utensil drawer is mounting a rack with 8-12 hooks close to your main food prep area. Hang your largest and most frequently used utensils there and save the drawer for smaller items and things you can't hang like peelers, corers, and meat thermometers.

Do not ever put sharp utensils with exposed blades in an overstuffed utensil drawer. It's just asking for trouble. Even if the utensil has a protective sheath on it, there's no guarantee that it won't come off as you're hunting through the drawer.

When it comes to organizing your dishes, silverware, and utensils, think convenience, but also safety. And when I use the term "safety" here, I'm referring not only to your safety, but also the safety of your dishes, because broken dishes are often the result of disorganized cabinet space.

About the Author:
Jeff Schweppe is president of Schweppe, Inc. a walk-in, online, and phone order foodservice and restaurant supply business, with the best selection of professional-grade kitchen supplies and commercial equipment in the Chicago area. Schweppe's store, located at 376 W. North Ave. 1/2 mile east of I-355, in Lombard, Illinois, is always open to the public. Website: http://www.SchweppeInc.com.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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