How I made my kitchen 10X more efficient

So I just moved into a new apartment, and I figured now is as good a time as any to completely reorganize my kitchen. And in doing so, my goal was to make cooking as quick, efficient, and enjoyable as possible. And I think I've been pretty successful. In fact, this new setup has completely changed the way I cook. So let me show you how I did it, and how you can too. Now, when I'm in the kitchen, my goal is to spend as much time actually cooking as possible, and as little time doing other things like cleaning, organizing, and looking around for equipment. So while it's important to have organized cabinets, and it does help to use fancy storage solutions and quote-unquote hacks that make optimal use of your space, that's not actually what makes the biggest difference in your kitchen efficiency. The biggest benefits come simply from the way that you lay out your kitchen. Let me explain. Basically, efficient cooking is all about having the right things ready at the right times, whether that be ingredients, prep equipment, or cookware. Because there's nothing more stressful and inefficient than trying to do everything at once. So the first thing you need to do when it comes to kitchen organization is to think about how you actually use your kitchen. Or in other words, which surfaces you use for each stage in the cooking process. And from there, you can set up your cabinets so that the items you use in each section of your kitchen are as close and easily accessible as possible. So for me, I like to cut all of my ingredients on this counter right next to the stove. So I keep my cutting boards in the cabinet right beneath that counter, and I keep my knives on a magnetic knife block right above that counter. Then all of my ingredients are located in the corner, either in the refrigerator or in the cabinets right next to the refrigerator. And all of my spices are located in the drawer right next to those cabinets. So the setup makes for a pretty streamlined process once I'm ready to cook. Basically, I start by getting out my cutting board and knife, and then I get out all of the ingredients that I'll need. And since the ingredients are grouped together, I'm able to get them out very quickly. Then I'll get out my pots, pans, trays, and any other equipment that I know I'll need. And if I forget to grab a thing or two, it's no big deal because I keep my most used equipment in the cabinets right next to my stove. So they're super easy to grab as I'm cooking. So I've got my cutting station, my mixing slash miscellaneous prep station, my cooking station, and then I'll use the far right side of my counter as my plating station once the food is ready. So all of my plates, bowls, and cups are stored as close to that side of the counter as possible. And last but not least, we can see that I've left some space on the left and right sides of the sink for dirty and clean dishes respectively. So when I'm ready to clean, I've already got the area set and ready to go. Now you also may have noticed that I don't really keep anything on my counter most of the time, aside from my electric water kettle and a few decorative items. And that's because first of all, I just like the way that a clear counter looks and feels. But more importantly, I'm saving myself a lot of valuable counter space. So this way when I'm cooking, the only things on my counter are the things that I'm actually using right now. And with a well organized kitchen, I spend very little time getting out less frequently used equipment on the rare occasions that I need it. Because personally, I'd much rather spend the extra 15 seconds to take out my stand mixer, blender, or toaster once every few days, as opposed to them taking up valuable counter space 24-7. Now with that said, I am fortunate to have quite a lot of space in my kitchen, which is definitely helpful in achieving a nice organized setup. But if you're working with a smaller kitchen, as I certainly have in the past, you're not out of luck. So when it comes to counter space, the absolute best way to create more is to buy or make a butcher block table, preferably one on wheels so that you can roll it out when you need it and put it back out of the way when you don't. And this is a great solution because in addition to providing more counter space, it generally looks pretty nice and it gives you some extra storage space as well via the shelf underneath. But even before you consider adding more space, it's important to make optimal use of the space you already have. And again, that mostly comes down to keeping your counters as clear as possible. And I know that may seem hard if you're already struggling to find space for things, but there are ways that you can create more space. And really the best solution is the most obvious one, but it's one that people tend not to think of. And it's just to get rid of excess things. Because as cooking enthusiasts, most of us tend to accumulate kitchen gear over time. New pans, new utensils, and fancy gadgets that seem super useful at first, but that in reality we never use. So by getting rid of those excess items that you don't use, or at least that you use very rarely, you can free up space for the things that you do use and find value in. So I've recently done this myself, and now that I have, I never want to go back. It just makes the cooking process so much more efficient, more enjoyable, and less stressful. And most importantly, it makes me feel motivated to keep cooking and trying new things. So only after you declutter your excess items can you start to think about actual storage and organization, which of course are extremely important, but they should be the final steps in the process. Because again, it would be a massive waste of time and effort to organize things that you don't even need or use in the first place. But we're going to cover that in part two of this series next week, which will be focused on how to actually organize your cabinets, fridge, and other areas of your kitchen in order to make cooking as stress-free and enjoyable as possible. So be sure to keep an eye out for that video next Friday. But in the meantime, if you're looking to improve your kitchen efficiency even further, I'd recommend checking out my most recent video right here, where I learned to more than double my chopping speed in just a couple of days. Either way, thanks a lot for watching, and I'll see you in the next one.