5 Things To Toss In Your Kitchen Before Thanksgiving

If you’re hosting Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving this year, chances are your mind is occupied by all the food and trimmings you have to procure. But before you head to the store or schedule that home delivery, do yourself the favor of getting rid of stuff in your kitchen first.

We asked Pam Clyde, President and Founder, BritLin Cleaning & Organizing, for pointers on how to prep the room that is, essentially, Thanksgiving Central. Some of these tips might seem quite obvious, but when you’ve got all the things on your mind leading up to the big day, it’s easy to overlook something. Here are some of the biggest must-not-haves for pulling off a successful Thanksgiving gathering.

Unused Appliances

No, you’re not getting rid of any appliance unless it’s no longer usable, of course. But in the interest of decluttering your countertops so you have more space for food prep, Clyde recommends removing any appliances that you won’t be using, such as the toaster, and storing them in the pantry or a closet until Thanksgiving is over.

Mail and Packages

It’s easy for your kitchen to look like a branch of the post office this time of year. Clyde says you can quickly declutter your kitchen if you take time to sort, organize, and relocate the stacks of mail and packages before your guests arrive. Just remember to put any bills, invitations, or other important mail in a spot where you won’t forget them later.

Expired Food and Produce

We’ll start with an obvious one, which is to dig through your fridge and freezer to get rid of old food, wilted produce, and anything past its prime. Everyone’s nose will be grateful that you’re tackling this task, but you’ll also be clearing much-needed shelf space for meal prep and, of course, leftovers.

Don’t forget to declutter the pantry, too. “If you have expired foods, you can toss them and make room for things that may have been spilling over on the top of the refrigerator or on the countertops in the kitchen,” Clyde says.

Anything on the Top and Front of Refrigerator

Now that you’ve freed up some space in your refrigerator, take a look at what’s going on outside of it, notably the top. “People put all kinds of things [on top of the fridge] just because they’re out of storage space,” Clyde says, adding rogue cereal boxes, in particular, have a way of congregating up there. “Does it really need to be there when your guests arrive, or is there room in the pantry for those things?”

Same goes for the doors of your refrigerator. “Do you have a bunch of extra magnets and notes you can pull off to make the outside of the refrigerator look fresher, neater, and tidier?” Clyde asks. If the answer is yes, do it before guests arrive. 

That last part might include taking down some artwork from your kids, so find a safe spot for those treasures if you’d like to rehang them later. Of course, your guests probably won’t mind seeing a handprint turkey or two, so go ahead and curate a small gallery if you can’t bear to take them all down.

Trash, Recycling, and Compost

Post-meal cleanup is always easier when there’s room to scrape plates and clear the table. Having an empty dishwasher waiting for tableware saves time, but so does having empty bins for trash, recycling, and compost. “Have a fresh bag in the trash can before your guests come in so you don’t have any smells or odors coming from it,” Clyde says.

It’s totally normal for your kitchen to look a bit worse for wear when you’re cooking up a Thanksgiving feast. But you can lessen the chaos a little bit when you take time to discard some items first and give yourself a clean(er) slate to work with.