Organization and Storage of BBQ Supplies and Ingredients


 
J

Jon in DFW

TVWBB Fan
My BBQ addiction has officially spilled over into 3 rooms of my home; the kitchen alone has 2 cabinet shelves and 2 drawers taken up.

I have multiple plastic storage containers of spices, random BBQ utensils gridlocked in a drawer, more injection kits and thermometer wires than I care to count. My garage has a pile of random Weber and grill accessories I've picked up over the last 20months... yes months...since I bought my first weber grill. Considering that in November 2019 I only owned a single 3 piece grill set and a brush, this mess of supplies and ingredients needs an overhaul.

This will be a multi week to multi month project, and I will post up as I find new things and put them to the test. But along the way, I would really appreciate it if others could show off what they are using for organization.
 
These are some quick pics of 2 of my many spice containers, and 1 drawer when I was digging things out to find a started cube... which I never found... which prompted my call for help.
 

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I have a similar issue. The biggest problem is the gear is spread all over the place instead of in one spot. Some utensils in the garage, some in the kitchen, some lesser used tools in other parts of the house. Most of the spices are in the same place but there are probably a dozen Zip-Locs of various rub mixes, some well labeled, some not so much. The little box I use to store these is overflowing. If you find a good system, let us know.
 
@JayHeyl I agree, my issue is like yours where its spread everywhere. I've spent some time tonight researching Chuck Boxes. Basically a all in one storage system for everything.

I can basically commender 1 whole cabinet, or 2 drawers in the kitchen. So I could go full custom storage solution like a modern Chuck Box build into the kitchen cabinet.
 

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I have a small closet in out sunroom right between the patio and the kitchen. I have all of my spatulas, tongs, etc., mounted to the inside of the door, and the shelves loaded with BBQ gear. I have a small basket with the most used items, probes, gloves, fire starters, lighter, etc., that allows me to just take the basket and go and have everything that I need most of the time. I thought of picking up a cheap Husky tool bag for the same thing, but the basket works just fine and fits in the closet on the shelf. Lesser used items are stored in the garage in plastic bins. Regular cooking items that I might use on the grills/smokers, such as baking sheets, spices, cutting boards, are all in the kitchen with the normal kitchen items.

Charlie
 
I need to do something different with my set up. Right now I have a 6 x 6 x 14 cheapo clear plastic box dedicated to my T-works smoke and billows system and all the cords/probes are sort of jumbled up in side the box. I like the clear plastic but need something better to help with cord management. Maybe a number of clear zipper bags with sliders would do it. for me.

I have some big *ss patio boxes that I keep charcoal, and grill grates, rangar rack, water pan and other "stuff" in but it's not well organized either. All in all, I'm OK at organizing but sort of terrible at staying organized. I have a shelf in the closet with some baskets to hold hooks and skewers.
I need to work on my organizing habits or just embrace the mess that is me. I think the author of this book might know me. The author may also know "us" Note the the "sausage" up and slightly to the right of the letter "g" in the title. ;)

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This does not speak to the entire question but I feel it's fair to share here. I don't know about you guys and gals but over the years I bought more than my fair share of spice racks, inexpensive and expensive. I've hated every one of them including the process of transferring the contents to the custom containers.

One year ago I finally honed-in on an approach that works well for my taste. I bought a couple of these and Shelley even lets me store them on the counter. In turn, I don't cringe when I see rabbit feeders on the countertops that she is cleaning.

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I realize it doesn't look attractive but Shelley grew up on a farm and in a farmhouse and being clutter-free and utilizing proper organization and appearances is not high on our priority list.

For a few items that I do choose to transfer I use these. Reasons for transfer include the original container being too large or items I buy in a large bulk package.

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And to store those large, bulky items between transfers I use this:

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Not to sound presumptuous but here are links:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077TWNQXT/?tag=tvwb-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06VW2PB4D/?tag=tvwb-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CG2R9ST/?tag=tvwb-20
 
Great ideas being shared here. @John K BBQ i have a similar thing going with the 6x6x14 plastic boxes, they worked when it was just one, but more than 1 has made it sloppy. Im thinking some kinda clip rack that bagged spices can hang from.

@BFletcher my wife has something similar in her baking cabinet 20210720_102911.jpgthese are expandable to go end to end in a cabinet shelf, i may need to explore this for myself.
 
BFletcher said:
One year ago I finally honed-in on an approach that works well for my taste. I bought a couple of these and Shelley even lets me store them on the counter. In turn, I don't cringe when I see rabbit feeders on the countertops that she is cleaning.
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The only thing is that leaving the spices on the counter exposes them to light, which accelerates their demise. All the experts agree spices should be stored in cool, dark places, or at least in opaque containers.

I tend to buy my more frequently used spices in bulk online and repackage them. I have some metal containers I use for that. The bigger ones have flexible seals on the tops so they're air tight as well as impervious to light. My intention was to rig up some magnets so I can stick the containers to the inside of the cabinet door but I've never actually gotten around to it.
 
I'm kinda organized. My Wife bought some wooden bookshelves ( which have a drawer and doors on the bottom) from craigslist which I use for spices, gloves, probes and cookware. She also bought a old wooden bar which I set up in my garage and call it the BBQ Bar.
I keep charcoal, smoke wood and my various collection of Weber grates in the bottom shelves.
I have totes or bins which are on tracks on my garage ceiling where I store more stuff that I don't use very often.
 
One thing I make sure of is to keep cooking oil out of direct sunlight ( It can turn Rancid)
I have two skylights in my kitchen and while they are great for sunlight and ventilation I have to watch what I store on my counters.
 
BFletcher said:
You won't see me disagreeing with your feedback but I don't aspire to be an expert and no one here in our household is capable of distinguishing between spices kept near indirect lighting vs a dark room :)
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While the spices won't go "bad", they lose their effectiveness. Get some fresh oregano and do a sniff test comparison with some that's been sitting on the counter for two years. If you can smell, you'll notice the difference. Since the whole point of spices is to impart their flavor to the dish, there's not a lot of point in using spices that don't taste like much. You can kind of compensate by using more but that only works to a point.

If you should have any interest in improving the storage situation, I've ordered from Specialty Bottle a number of times and always been pleased with their service. They're happy to sell by the case or by the individual unit. That's where I got the tins I use for my bulk spices.
 
Traveling for work and my wife sent a nice suprise, she hung my cast irons in the pantry. I normally kept them stacked on the pantry shelf. This meant I would always use the first 1 or 2 in the pile. Now I can choose easier.

The hooks are rated for 25lbs and have a threaded screw end so she made pilot holes and screwed them into the studs. She bought them at ACE Hardware

She also spent last week doing general pantry reorganization as well.

@Joe Anshien thats the "metal thing" you sent me. I cleaned it up and oiled it and its been great as a burger press and shredded potato hash. I know that isn't what it originally was for, but it works great. Thanks again.

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