Storing pots and pans: at a glance A base cabinet with pull-outs for pots, pans and cooking utensils makes items easy to find and ensures efficient workflows in the kitchen. Ideally, this cabinet should be under the hob or right next to it.
Your pantry may be the best spot for your pots and pans organizer. Just hang a basic pegboard on the inside of the pantry door and add some pegs. You can hang your pots and pans, and other kitchen gear as well. If you have wall space that isn't occupied by cupboards, try hanging your pots and pans on the wall.
Store Them in the Corner (with the right equipment)
Vertical pot racks are tower-shaped, allowing you to store your pots and pans in the corner of your kitchen while keeping them accessible. This is a great stacking option that protects your non-stick surfaces since these storage pieces keep your cookware separated.
Ideally, your cookware should be stored near the range for convenience while cooking, and you should be able to grab the pan you need without rummaging around a crowded cabinet. That means the first step to organizing pots and pans is usually to edit your collection.
Hang them from pot rails on a wall.
Wall space is just storage space waiting to happen! If you have any walls in your kitchen without cabinets or shelving, consider adding a pot rail or two and using hooks to hang cookware. Bonus idea: You can prop the lids onto the rails for even smarter storage.
“Like a mattress that's been sliced open and has stuffing and foam coming out of it, if you can see the core of your cookware, you need to throw it out,” Maker says. “Most of the time, it'll be a copper base, so you'll know when it's visible.”
Use cabinets to keep your items out of sight
For additional organization, you can install small drawers or shelves within your cabinets. Your kitchen cabinets organize pots, pans, and plates, so why not use the same concept in your garage?
For a home cook, a decent set of cookware should last between five and ten years, depending on the frequency of cooking. "The best type of material to use in general is stainless steel, with the exception of using non-stick for omelets," explains Scott Clarke, a chef and owner of Blue Monkey Catering.
Generally, consider putting spices, cans of food, and glasses in upper cabinets. Put larger and heavier dishes, pots, pans, and frequently used small appliances in the lower cabinets (rarely used small appliances can stay in the upper cabinets).
For quick and easy pot lid storage, hang a magnetic strip, like the kind used to hold knives or shed tools, to hold magnetic pot lids. Install the strip on a kitchen wall or behind a cabinet door. If your pot lids are not magnetic, hang them from adhesive hooks inside a kitchen cabinet or pantry.
One of those options is using felt or rubber pan protectors to make sure the pans don't come into contact. As a result you can keep stacking your pans. You could also use towels. There are however, also special racks you can use to store the pans.
While there is no exact timeframe of when you should replace your cookware, most nonstick cookware items will remain good for about five years.
Pots and pans are often bulky and heavy, so a wall cabinet is not appropriate. And storing them in an open cabinet goes against aesthetic principles: it makes the kitchen look untidy. Blum's kitchen observations show that pots and pans are often piled up in base cabinets with shelves.
Pots and pans may become damaged if you keep food in them in the refrigerator. Long-term storage of salty or acidic foods in cookware can cause the metal to corrode, reducing its durability. Pans made of cast iron and carbon steel may rust if they are exposed to moisture in the refrigerator.
Rather than storing damaged plastic pots, recycle them and then replace them in the spring, says DePaola. Store your plastic planters upside down in a basement, garage, greenhouse, or shed over winter. If storing outdoors, cover them with a tarp to avoid rain, frost, snow, and direct sunlight.
Avoid storing cookware, like pots and pans, under your sink. "If there is any leaking or dripping due to condensation or moisture introduced from washing dishes, it can potentially contaminate cookware," says Cooper. Instead, keep these items in your kitchen cabinets or in a nearby closet.
When you carelessly stack pots and pans on top of one another without any padding, you risk damaging the finish and/or coating on your cookware, not to mention make it more difficult to find and access the items you need when you need them.
Without an extra pantry or much wall space, storing our pots and pans in the kitchen cabinets was the most obvious spot. Kitchen cabinets are a popular storage solution for pots and pans, but with so many different types and sizes of cookware, it can be difficult to keep them organized and easily accessible.
Hang Pots and Pans Above the Stove
Keeping pots and pans above the stove makes them easier to access when cooking, plus it frees up room in your cabinets and drawers.
Avoid Chef "Burn-Out"
Scour gently with mild abrasive cleaner, baking soda or plastic mesh pad. If scouring didn't work, soak it in a solution of liquid hand dishwashing detergent and/or baking soda and water to loosen soil.