I bragged about my newly organized pantry on the Escapee’s forum and someone asked me what I do with my spices. It seems that spice storage is a big issue with a lot of RVers for some reason. I don’t have that problem and I think it has to do with my newly acquired philosophy of less is more. I only keep on hand the spices and herbs I use the most. I keep some in a wooden spice rack on the counter, storing them in cute Ikea spice jars:

Spice rack by me, spice jars by Ikea

For the rest, I compartmentalize. The spices for baking go in the baking basket (the one on the right hand side in the middle compartment), and the rest take up about a third of one of the pantry shelves.

Since spices lose their flavour within a year and I’m cooking only for myself, I’ve found it to be more advantageous to buy just what I need of a special spice for a particular meal. It might cost more per ounce, but there’s no waste.

The spices and herbs I keep on hand are:

• cumin
• turmeric
• Ethiopian spice mix
• lemon pepper seasoning
• celery salt
• oregano
• basil
• bay leaves
• cinnamon
• nutmeg
• powdered vegetable broth
• various ‘Mrs. Dash’ varieties, no more than three at a time (currently I have a Southwest mix, garlic, and mixed herbs)
• salt
• black pepper

I find that compartmentalizing the spices works great. Everything I need for baking is in one basket, from the cinnamon to the almond extract to the baking powder and vanilla. When I want to bake, I only have three things to pull out; the baking basket, the flour, and the sugar.

So, if you’re having ‘spice issues’, maybe it’s time to go through your collection, get rid of anything you haven’t touched in a year, and try sorting them by use rather than by name.