Martha Stewart's Pantry Storage Solution For Shelf-Stable Produce — Your Countertops Will Thank You!

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Most of your groceries probably have a permanent home where you unpack them without even thinking about it. Cereal boxes line cabinet shelves, and plenty of people seem to put their milk in the refrigerator door, even if that's the worst place to store it. But then you have goods that are a little more confounding to situate. Shelf-stable produce is a particular head scratcher. Take potatoes, which are best kept in that oft-cited cool, dark place. That's cool, not cold, so the refrigerator is out, as its lower temperature will expedite the starch's transformation into unappealing sugar. And potatoes sure aren't as pretty as something like a bowl of fruit out on the countertop, even when it does check those the lower heat and light boxes. Nor would potatoes feel right tucked away alongside your Lucky Charms. Pantry drawers like those once pitched by the kitchen maven Martha Stewart, instead, are the ideal solution.

In a YouTube clip advertising Stewart's apparent collaboration with California Closets, the TV icon and entrepreneur extols the virtues of utilizing a pantry shelving unit fixed with mesh drawers to cradle all of your tubers, alliums, and plenty of gourd varieties. It's great for keeping these items out of sight and in their ideal environment for longevity. Plus, you can find similar configurations like this Simple Houseware Basket Organizer to slide into your existing pantry if a more permanent retrofit isn't possible.

Although your family may have a matriarch who tells tales of potatoes and onions mingling together with no ill effects, each can cause the other to spoil faster. So, as simple as it may seem to toss them together on a shelf behind closed doors, you're likely just exacerbating your home's food waste and adding to your monthly grocery budget in the process. Drawers, instead, with, say, onions in a top tier, potatoes at the bottom, and something like garlic in between, give each ingredient a little more breathing room. The improved airflow is key to keeping each ingredient as fresh as possible.

Drawers also have the incidental perk of just being more organized. Even if those onions and potatoes got along a bit better, it's tidier and better for meal prep to keep them in their own, dedicated spaces. You can also, of course, use the drawers for other items within reason, when those russets and Yukon Golds are off the menu. But don't go disrupting your whole kitchen — Cap'n Crunch and Toucan Sam are resistant to change (and wouldn't benefit from better ventilation, anyway). Yams, sweet potatoes, and thick-skinned winter squash are all great candidates.