Holiday Refrigerator Organization Tips

Family, food, and festivities: the holiday season is a favorite time of the year for many, and for good reason! Home cooked meals with loved ones make this time of the year feel extra cheerful and comforting. However, planning for that perfect, photo-worthy, mouthwatering holiday feast can be stressful – luckily, we have a few tips to help this year’s festive meal prep run smoother than ever before.

Good refrigerator organization ideas are key for the holiday season, especially if you’re the go-to host for large family gatherings. We love the Bosch 800 Series French Door Bottom Mount Refrigerator for just this reason, it is brimming with thoughtful features to perfectly accommodate your holiday menu storage. These features include interior LED lighting so you can see all of your ingredients even way in the back, clear glass shelving and drawer space to help you better see and store a variety of fresh ingredients, a three-tier freezer shelving system to help you organize and easily access every item you need, and the innovative FarmFresh System™ to help to maintain the flavor and freshness of your food.

Whether you’re hosting one or all of the gatherings this season, here are some of our favorite holiday organization tips to get you started:

Lone pieces of produce or takeout leftovers can utilize precious space when you need to squeeze one more cranberry sauce onto a shelf. The first step in organizing your refrigerator to prepare for the holiday cooking and baking marathon is cleaning out any old food and using up the last of your ingredients before grocery shopping.

Always remember to use the “first in-first out” rule, meaning you should store the newest items in the back portion of your refrigerator and bring the older items to the front to ensure you use those first. Additionally, you can write dates on leftovers and other items to make sure you are not keeping them longer than you should, preventing them from taking up additional space.

A method we enjoy using for a refrigerator clean out is to completely remove all items shelf by shelf and clean as you go, wiping down any spills or sticky areas you may find. The result is a sparkling clean refrigerator that’s ready for the influx of festive foods.

Raw meat, poultry, and fish should be stored on the bottom-most shelf. Placing them on top of a tray with a lip can help prevent any juices from leaking and prevent cross-contamination of other ingredients. Foods that are made ahead of time and will be re-heated, such as casseroles, can be placed on the shelves above the meat. Ready-to-eat foods, such as salads or desserts, should be placed on the topmost section of the refrigerator.

Your fruits and vegetables should be stored separately. We love using clear containers and bins to separate them out, even within crisper drawers. Clear materials allow for your ingredients to still be within full view for quick and easy access when cooking. We love the FarmFresh System™ when it comes to maintaining your produce as fresh as possible for the best tasting holiday meals. The system works by combining four innovative technologies, including filters, temperature, and humidity controls, that are designed to keep your food fresh up to 3x longer*.

Since the door is the warmest part of your refrigerator due to continued opening and closing, we recommend storing your least-perishable items there. Drinks, non-dairy items, and stable sauces can be stored here to maximize interior space.

_{*As compared to a Bosch refrigerator without FarmFresh System™. Results may vary among different foods. Individual results vary depending on type, initial freshness and proper storage and use of food.}

Many refrigerators on the market today are equipped with features to help you maintain organization through their use. The Bosch 800 Series French Door Bottom Mount Refrigerator is full of features to help you prep for a large feast. We love the customizable FlexBar® because it helps maximize usable space in the upper cavity of the refrigerator – the FlexBar® can be easily moved around to accommodate different items and ensure they are within easy reach.

We also appreciate features such as flex drawers to accommodate a variety of different items - from appetizer platters to wine bottles. The Bosch refrigerator has a full-width chiller drawer, perfect to hold any oversized items or serving trays.

Additionally, the Bosch French Door Bottom Mount Refrigerator is Wi-Fi-enabled with Home Connect®, so you can control your refrigerator from the palm of your hand. Push notifications will alert you if your refrigerator door is left open, helping to prevent spoilage and unnecessary food waste. It also allows you to control humidity and temperature levels, ensuring the optimal settings for your items.

Refrigerator organization is about customizing the way you use the space to align with your holiday cooking and baking needs. We hope these tips help your festive planning to be full of extra cheer this year!