This is an ongoing post.
Last updated November 30th, 2024.

Okay okay. Here we go - an ongoing thread to keep track of the fun  things I do to keep my kitchen functioning at home. Well, fun to me at least. I’m defining ‘functioning' as: to more easily enjoy the process that is cooking.

Let’s be ffr: my kitchen is teeny tiny. Before I added the island, there was no counter space (literally none), so it was hard to even call it a kitchen. There's the door, the stove, the kitchen sink, the fridge, the bathroom, the fire escape. Side to side. Then there's basically the living room and then the wall. There’s no separation without the island, and even then.

It's a small apartment.

The added kitchen island makes the space, both aesthetically and functionally. Without it, there's absolutely no way.

But it’s also (become) the magical part of the apartment. Despite having the least amount of space i’ve ever had in any home kitchen i’ve ever lived, this is the most fun i’ve had cooking. I might lowkey miss this kitchen should i ever move.

The challenge of working within a small space made the space exciting to work in. It felt more alive, more of a challenge, and, i slowly realized that, because there could be so much to do (obviously so because of space constraints) while cooking (cleaning, organizing, re-arranging, shifting things around), you could more easily enter a flow, similar to that of swimming or working on a creative task. In short, the lack of space has been quite a blessing. It made me realize that i do love cooking, especially with the challenge of order, process, structure, and a set system.

It's helped to live in places for over a year now that didn’t have a microwave. At first i was like ughhhhh. But then - It forces you to learn your stove and the heat (wherever you are), which can help to quickly contextualize your heat usage when you cook, which then makes you a better cook in general.

It’s also led me to top 4 things to do if you’d like to get into cooking more or have struggled with it in the past. Okay I’m experimenting with this format to link to another post, it feels very gimmicky, but this post did inspire that one.

Anyway, here’s some things i do to keep my kitchen orderly but fun and exciting, whether it’s a natural flow or it’s from solving a problem.

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Managing waste

(Plus a tangent on my Are.na schedule below)

Managing waste was the first central thing. At first i had a normal sized trash bin like i always do, but it quickly attracted unwanted guests. It’s NY. They not going nowhere. But, if there’s little food, what can they do? Leave. (Um it’s actually one of the literal principles of IPM if you didn’t know, starve them out)…

I removed the bin, re-purposed it into my laundry bin (nice, and yes i did clean it), and bought three lil dust bins from Muji. One medium, two small. I limit my trash to those three bins. The two small are primarily for food waste, and the bigger one for the occasional random thing. They quickly fill up, but there are far less pests around, if any, and it's also functional for cooking. WHenever i start chopping away, I’ll grab one of the small bins, and as i start creating scraps, they go right into the bin, keeping it all organized, clean, and uncluttered.

I highly recommend getting a small trash bin for your cooking, even if you can also have the space for a proper trash can.

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The Are.na schedule

Okay. The Are.na schedule. Lol. I randomly decided to place two stickers on each of the smaller bins. One says “Are.na? No thanks”, and the other says, “Are.na? Yes please!” These are both from Are.na, so it’s ok, no shade.

Both stickers are precisely placed on each respective small bin. 'No thanks' sits on the side of its bin, 'Yes please' sits on the top. When No thanks is in use, the Yes please is covered (cause the sticker is on top), and I don’t go on Are.na. Or rather, i follow the suggestion that maybe i should take a moment to not be on Are.na. As soon as it does get filled up tho, then Are.na Yes please goes on top, and the sticker is visible, and it let’s me know that I am now in a period where I can use Are.na. But i kindly remind myself that i do not have to for the sake of being given permission to from the trash cans. If you read this far, lol.

Cutting boards

I’d primarily started off with a small rectangular one because space. It may have also been from Muji at some point. Just big enough. I have others, but i was like eh. The small cutting board was what initially made me get into the habit of cutting things and moving them off the board, wiping it, and grabbing the next thing. But, it moves easily cause it’s small. So, I’ve since added a new one to the mix, a gigantic square one that nearly takes the space of half of the island. So far it’s been great, and it adds a bit more organization to the island. I use the spaces it leaves on the sides for different things.

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Dishwasher

Currently no, i let air dry on the island, on the other side of the cutting board. This becomes an issue as i’m cooking and starting to clean and remove things but that’s why it’s helpful to have kitchen towels so i can wipe them down and put away if i’m doing 1-2 dishes at a time in between cooking.

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Kitchen towels

The hardest workers that no one talks about. Get kitchen towels and use them frequently (and then wash frequently).

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Primary kitchen tools

• Pots and pans. My go to pan is the cast iron currently.
• Colander, usually just one, for rice, noodles, etc
• Mixing bowl
• A santoku and petty knife

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Pantry

The pantry is a funny thing. At first, my thing was to keep that super organized. Then, i realized it’s more about grabbing what you need from the outset, so reaching into the pantry isn’t as big of a deal as it might be. I stll keep it organized, but it’s more for the sake of having a clear place to return something to when i’m done with while cooking. In professional kitchens, setting up a mise en place is central around oils and spices and the go to things.

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More to come

I will be adding more here as I think of other process things that keep the kitchen organized, such as:

• Keeping inventory
• Labeling (for FIFO)
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