Welcome back to our comprehensive guide on How To Be A Master Chef for beginners and food enthusiasts! In today's posts, we'll go over how to organize and de-clutter your kitchen. If you've ever wanted to be a master chef, the time is now, so let's get started!

Don't miss the Introduction to How To Be A Master Chef In 10 Days!

Cook Like A Chef

Many people may think of cooking as a job or even a chore, but the truth is that cooking can be an interesting hobby that combines feelings of excitement and relaxation. While some people choose to make cooking a career path, others use it as a form of therapy. Cooking at home is also a relatively wallet-friendly hobby due to how expensive it can be to constantly eat out. Also, you're in total control of what you put in your body. This means that you are now and forevermore being given the opportunity to participate in a diet that is conducive to a healthy lifestyle while maintaining the taste that you will enjoy.

Through cooking, you will have the ability to make your dishes match your nutritional and taste necessities. Cooking generally results in the creation of foods that you want to eat (unless you're a terrible cook, in which case, this guide should help a lot!). When cooking your own food, you will also become aware of what you are putting in your body, allowing you to make changes as needed. Everything you cook will contain precisely what you want to put in your body, meaning you are being given the tools to create your own diet.

Regardless of where you live, this section will assist you in setting up your kitchen to meet your needs. This will be the longest and most in-depth section in this course because organizing and getting to know your kitchen are the most important parts of learning to cook! Throughout this guide, you will find information that will assist you in making the most out of what you have in relation to space, and you may even discover that your kitchen is not so small after all! Kitchens come in all shapes and sizes, and a lot of people do not utilize their space to the maximum. After you read this, you will understand how to set up a cooking space, use all of the major kitchen appliances, and practice kitchen safety. At the end of these posts, we will give you a feel for food with a simple recipe as well!

Organizing Your Kitchen for Cooking

Contrary to popular belief, granite counter tops and thousands of dollars in kitchen appliances are not necessary when creating fantastic meals!  Having a cooking area that is well-designed and open is not necessary either, but this will definitely make your cooking experience easier and more enjoyable. If you're able to move the components in your kitchen around to make life a little easier for yourself, we definitely recommend doing so! You want to make sure that everything in your kitchen is easily accessible while maintaining efficiency. For example if you use something constantly and it is nowhere near the area that you need it in, you might want to move it to that area. Who wants to walk 10 feet away to get the pepper? Make your cooking life easier and more efficient as soon as possible!

Clutter

Clutter is never a good thing, meaning you should always be able to move in your kitchen. Your refrigerator, stove/oven, and sink should all be easily accessible from your cooking space. Regardless of the shape of your kitchen, you want to make sure that these important appliances are clear to access. This is not necessary, but it will make your life easier! Clutter can be found in kitchens throughout the country, but the key is management. Make sure that you do not let your clutter overwhelm you!

Cluttered Counter Tops Be Gone!

Maybe you've never tried dicing and slicing in an area that it is impossible to find a cutting board but trust us, these areas exist! Some counter tops can get so cluttered that the cook can be overwhelmed with stuff. The counter top is one of the most common places to house blenders, food processors, spice jars, bills, coffeemakers, pens, pencils… Well, you get the point. All of the stuff that you are not using at that exact moment does not belong on your counter top. Your kitchen should never be used as a storage unit! Cluttered and uncluttered counter tops can be the difference between making a delicious meal at home and ordering Chinese delivery. The great thing about cluttered counter tops is that this is a problem that is easy to resolve.

When de-cluttering your counter tops, it is important to ask, “Do I need this here?” If the answer is no, the next question should be, “Where should I put this?” Deciding where to put something in your kitchen is a decision that is based on whether or not it actually belongs in the kitchen. Bills, paperwork, and running shoes do not belong in the kitchen, meaning you should probably find another place in your home to store them. If it is your food processor, coffeemaker, rice cooker, etc., you can always find storage in your kitchen based on how often you use them. If you make coffee every morning, you will probably want to store it somewhere in your kitchen where it is easily accessible. Maybe you're limiting your carb intake. If you are, you probably won't be using your rice cooker too often. In the case of appliances you don't use daily, we recommend that you put them in an area where they are out of the way and not taking up room that could be used for appliances you use constantly. De-cluttering your counter tops will assist you in your desire to cook constantly and save money.

Light Up Your Culinary World

Making sure that your kitchen is well lit is important for cooking because when a kitchen is poorly lit, the chance for mistakes is increased. Remember, you are working with sharp knives and hot stoves! Have you ever tried cutting a potato in the dark? You probably shouldn't! Stovetop lights found in the hood can be extremely beneficial when you are trying to get a dish to have a certain color. Browning meat is also simplified when utilizing a well-lit kitchen. Burned out bulbs should always be replaced upon noticing them. Get off your butt and change out those bulbs! You'll be happy you did! Perhaps your kitchen is just dimly lit by nature. Getting new lights installed can be expensive; we recommend that you get a wall-mounted light to put up. These lights are cheap, efficient, and powered by batteries.

Pantry Organization for Optimal Pantry Use

If you've never cooked before, you may not know that a pantry is not just for Doritos and snack-cakes; this is the spot where you should be keeping your basic cooking ingredients and dry goods. Flour, sugar, crackers, pasta, rice, and spices are all kept within the pantry. Make sure that the ingredients you use the most are easily accessible. We like to keep the sugar, flour, and oil towards the front of our pantry.

Perhaps your pantry is too small for your needs… No problem! There are plenty of kitchen cabinets that are not going to break your bank. These cabinets have extra storage that will allow you to house more stuff and even facilitate accessing your ingredients! Some cabinets rotate while others contain drawers, shelves, and baskets found on tracks that allow you to reach everything in your cabinets with ease. You can even mount these cabinet accessories yourself! Some stores sell kits that will facilitate this process. Go check out your local hardware store and they should have something that will work for you.

Having a good storage system in your cabinets is important because this helps you to organize your pantry better. Rather than having stacks of ingredients toppling over every time you open a cabinet, you will have a cabinet that is properly organized and ingredients that are easily accessible. Also, your cabinets will look very professional for when people come over to try your signature dish!The general rule of thumb for cabinet organization is to make sure that everything you use is as easy to access as possible. In essence, you do not want to have to dig for something you use every day. Bring everything that is constantly used  towards the front of your pantry, making these items the easiest to reach.

Your journey doesn't end here; it's only beginning! These Main Appliances & Utensils will be your new best friends in the kitchen!   

Don't forget to catch the next part of our guide to How To Be A Master Chef In 10 Days! We love hearing your feedback and comments, so let us know if you have any other tips for beginner cooks or your thoughts on this series. HomemadeRecipes.com was founded to create an online community where foodies, epicureans and chefs can share recipes and learn new ones! We need your help, however, in creating this community where you can come, share and learn. If you love to cook, love food or have some great recipes and ideas you’d like to share with us, shoot us an email and make sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest! We’re always looking for contributors and want to hear from you.

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