Deep Pantry Organization: 5 Tips To Make the Most of Your Pantry!

The dreaded tall pantry with deep shelves: definitely NOT the walk in pantry of our HGTV dreams!

My own kitchen pantry storage situation was less than ideal (aka: it was a MESS). Sadly, I did nothing to the pantry when I did my DIY Kitchen Remodel.

It took me two years of tweaking and experimenting to create an organized pantry that maximizes use of the deep shelves and the vertical space.

But now I have a fantastic deep pantry organization system in place. YAY!

So how, exactly, do you organize deep pantry shelves? Read on for five great deep pantry organization tips! You’re on your way to loving your pantry with deep shelves!

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Clean Out the Pantry

The essential first step in any pantry organizing project is cleaning out the old food, expired items, and things that are no longer needed.

You’ll be amazed (in a deep pantry, especially) how much junk is in there!

Once you’ve gotten rid of the rubbish, you’ll have a much better picture of what you’re actually working with. (Side note: I’m not British, but I think “rubbish” is such a charming word.)

Create Zones

Next, group your pantry items into zones or categories such as everyday items, lesser-used items, and appliances.

Knowing which products are the most frequently used (and vice versa), will help dramatically with laying out the pantry storage.

Start With the Top Shelf

In a tall pantry, there tends to be a significant dead space simply because people can’t easily reach items stored above their heads.

But, consider this a storage goldmine because the upper shelf is a wonderful spot to stash food items, appliances, and paper products that are not needed on a daily basis.

Use shelf risers to make use of vertical pantry space

Use shelf risers at the back of deep shelves, and place items on top of them so they are visible when the pantry is open.

I placed paper plates, paper napkins, and plastic utensils on the shelf risers in the top back of my pantry because I do not access these daily. However, since they’re high above the things in front, I can see them easily (and I’m making use of that extra vertical space in the pantry).

Clear bins and containers help you see what’s on higher shelves

Then, in front of the shelf risers, use large clear bins to house things like baking supplies (baking powder, baking soda, brown sugar, etc.), that don’t need to be accessed regularly.

Placing these things in clear containers also gives a quick view of what is stored where. No more digging around and making a mess to find the cornstarch!

Pro tip: keep a folding stool in the bottom of the pantry to make accessing the high shelves a snap.

Put the Most-Used Items in the Middle Shelves

Next, it’s time to make those deep shelves in the middle of the pantry work for you. Because this area of the pantry is at eye-level, this is where you place the things you use the most.

Add pull out drawers to deep pantry shelves

To maximize deep pantry storage, adding pull out drawers is a MUST (in my humble opinion).

The first part of my pantry organization work was to add Elfa drawers from the Container Store. They made a huge difference instantaneously, and went a long way toward keeping my pantry organized.

I installed sliding drawers on three of the deep shelves in the middle of the pantry. I used a variety of heights and sizes based on the types of food items I was storing.

For breads and chips, I used a wider but shorter Elfa drawer.

For pastas and grains, and then canned goods, I used tall and wide Elfa drawers.

And finally, for snacks and treats, I used tall and extra narrow Elfa drawers.

These drawers are wonderful for deeper pantries, because they let you see and access everything on a shelf simply by pulling out the drawer. You’re not sticking your head into the shelf and moving things around (making a mess!), trying to find what you need.

And, clip on labels placed on the front of the drawers help ensure that people are putting things where they belong, and not treating the pantry as a dumping ground after family members go grocery shopping.

Keep space for adjustable shelving

Instead of outfitting all of the shelves with drawers, I intentionally left some open space. This allows me to fit in those oddly-shaped items or rare purchases that don’t fit in a drawer. It’s important to maintain some flex space in a pantry.

Use clear containers for food items in flimsy packaging

Baking supplies (like flour and sugar), and breakfast items (like cereal), tend to be packaged in flimsy bags or cardboard. These packages open, causing the food inside to go bad or make a mess in the pantry. They also take on strange shapes that don’t work well for organizing.

Transferring items like this to clear storage containers eliminates all of these problems, and it lets you quickly see how much of each product you have.

For the middle pantry shelves, I purchased clear containers for cereal. My kids NEVER closed the cereal boxes properly, and the cereal was always stale. They also shoved the boxes wherever they could find a spot.

Using these clear cereal containers has been a game changer for our organized pantry storage (and the taste of our morning breakfast- ha!).

Add small containers or lazy susans for more effective storage

Depending on your needs, using small containers, stacking bins, or a lazy susan may help you create more space in the pantry.

For example, I use a small basket in the canned goods drawer to house soft-sided items like seasoning packets.

I do not use a turntable in the pantry (I use one in the refrigerator though), but those can be excellent additions – especially for things like canned goods.

Make Use of the Lower Shelves in a Deep Pantry

As with the upper shelves, the lower shelves in a deep pantry can be very useful if organized correctly! They can be harder to access, so it’s essential to use this pantry storage area for the right items (not the food you need quick access to).

Place small appliances on a rolling cart

For ease of access, use a rolling cart at the bottom of the deep cabinet to store heavy items you don’t need regularly.

I keep my Instant Pot (which I LOVE, by the way – my favorite appliance ever!), on a rolling printer cart. Instead of having to reach deep in there and pull it out, I just roll the cart out and grab it.

The shelves on the bottom of the cart also give me a space to store extra food items, like snacks that aren’t ready to be opened and placed in the snack drawers on the middle shelves! I call this my “stockroom.”

Add portable drawers

As with the middle section of the pantry, drawers can be very useful in the bottom.

A portable Elfa drawer stand in the base of my pantry is a dedicated spot for my husband to stash his nutrition supplements that he uses for his triathlon training. The shelf on top is a great spot to store drinks before they make it to the refrigerator.

Because the drawer unit is portable, it can be moved to accommodate any large items that need to be stored in the pantry at any time. It gives us flexible space that makes the most of the benefits of deep pantry storage.

Create extra kitchen storage

The base of a deep pantry can also be a perfect spot for extra kitchen storage. Things like cleaning supplies and large bags are perfectly placed on the bottom shelf or in the base of the pantry.

For example, I put reusable shopping bags in a basket on the floor of the pantry. I also have enough space to store any overflow items from other cabinets or when it’s a fully stocked pantry.

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Alright, well would I rather have a walk in pantry like you see in all the new homes on TV? Yes, yes I would.

But, all of these products and solutions that I’ve added to my deep pantry over the past two years have made a huge difference, and I no longer hate my pantry. That’s a win!

I hope my experiences will help you arrive at a positive working relationship with your pantry, too!