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For many, the kitchen is a place of control. It’s where meals come together, where families gather, and where the cooking magic happens. That’s exactly why kitchen clutter feels so frustrating.
Few things are more annoying than being halfway through a recipe and not being able to find the tool you need, or reaching for an essential ingredient only to realize it expired months ago.
Professional organizer Maura Fitzgerald says the kitchen is often one of the biggest sources of clutter in most homes. And while a full organizational reset can feel like a lot, Closet Therapy founder and professional organizer Shaniece Jones recommends blocking off time, putting on a playlist, and starting small so the project feels more manageable.
To help, we asked experts which kitchen items should be the first to go. Tossing them—donating them, when possible—can make your space feel lighter, less stressful, and easier to cook every Delish recipe in.
1. Unused Small Kitchen Appliances
"No one remembers the one-hit wonders, so I say to start there and let those go: The sushi kit you swore you’d use weekly, the ice cream maker, the broken air fryer you’ve been meaning to replace or fix," Jones says.
Professional organizer Nikki Boyd, founder of At Home with Nikki, says juicers are often one of the biggest offenders.
“In my experience, juicers are the most underutilized appliance of all,” Boyd says. “Fueled by New Year’s resolutions and the desire for healthier habits, people eagerly invest in a juicer at the beginning of the year. But the enthusiasm fades as soon as they realize how much work it is to maintain and clean the juicer after each use!”
For Avi Szapiro, executive chef and co-founder of Gioia, bread makers are another common space-waster.
“If you became interested in bread making and the fever only lasted a few months, that bread-making machine is now just taking up a lot of space,” Szapiro says.
2. Take-Out Condiments & Plastic Cutlery
We all have that drawer: leftover ketchup packets from McDonald’s, soy sauce from your last Chinese takeout order, little tubs of Chick-fil-A sauce, and unopened plastic cutlery packets.
“It’s okay to keep a very small stash of these things in case you want to throw a packet of ketchup in a kid’s lunchbox at some point, but they shouldn’t be front and center in the kitchen,” professional organizer Bridget Urgo, co-owner of The Settler says.
Urgo recommends throwing out 90 percent of the packets and moving the rest to an “on the go” basket in the pantry, along with disposable coffee cups and other paper goods.
3. Expired Food
"Toss expired foods, ingredients, and foods that no longer align with your health goals," Jones says.
Most people are good about tossing moldy blueberries or lunch meat past its sell-by date, but condiments can sit in the refrigerator for years.
“Your refrigerator doors are a good place to start when decluttering a kitchen, as dressings, sauces, and condiments tend to live in there longer than they should,” Fitzgerald says.
While you’re at it, check the oils in your pantry, too. Canola oil, olive oil, avocado oil, and other cooking oils do not last forever.
4. Spices That Have Lost Their Flavor
Spice racks tend to become seasoning graveyards.
“I will be organizing a kitchen in Connecticut and see spices from New York City grocery stores—and the client hasn’t lived in New York City for 15 years!” Urgo says.
While expired spices are not likely to make you sick, they do lose potency over time. “Some spices can last a year past the sell-by-date, but if you come across anything older than that, throw it away,” Urgo suggests.
5. Old Plastic & Wooden Kitchen Tools
We all have kitchen tools we reach for constantly, like the perfectly-sized cutting board or the wooden spoon we refuse to part with. But scratched plastic and porous wood can trap bacteria, especially once they start showing visible wear.
We recommend replacing wooden spoons every five yearsor sooner if they are cracked, splintered, or heavily worn.
It may also be worth taking a closer look at black plastic kitchenware. Recent research found that some black plastic kitchenware can contain high levels of toxic flame retardants, which may enter household products through recycled electronic waste.
6. Mismatched Food Storage Containers
Food storage containers are supposed to make your kitchen more organized, but they often do the opposite.
“People are nuts about Tupperware—they keep tons of it, even if the pieces are missing tops,” Urgo says.
Throw out any mismatched containers, and aim to keep only what you actually use. Urgo recommends narrowing your collection down to three round containers and three rectangular containers. To prevent containers from losing their lids, “store them with their tops on,” Fitzgerald advises.
7. Old Cookware & Baking Sheets
Pots, pans, and baking sheets are designed to last for years, but not forever.
“It’s important to throw away any pans or baking sheets with scratched nonstick coatings; these can pose real health risks,” Fitzgerald says.
You also probably don’t need several versions of the same pan. Stick to the sizes you use most often, such as one 8-inch, one 10-inch, and one 12-inch frying pan. Holding onto extras will only eat up cabinet space.
8. Entertaining Supplies You Rarely Use
If you entertain often, it may be worth hanging on to extra wine glasses, flatware, tablecloths, and oversized serving platters. But if you rarely host, those items can take up a lot of space for something you might only use once in a while.
“When you’re renting tables and chairs, it’s easy to just rent items like wine glasses and linens at the same time, and then you don’t have to deal with cleaning all of that stuff when the party is over,” Urgo says.
9. Inherited China
If you love your grandmother’s china or your mother’s silver tea service and they have sentimental value, they can stay.
“But if you’re never going to use it and you’re only holding onto it out of guilt, give yourself permission to let it go,” Urgo says.
She adds that clients often look to her for the gentle encouragement they need to part with these items. Depending on their value, you can either sell or donate heirlooms you no longer want to store.
10. Too Many Water Bottles
Every organizer has their own pet peeve, and for Fitzgerald, it’s water bottles.
“Why is this such a problem for people?!” Fitzgerald says with a laugh. “Keep one water bottle for each family member, plus no more than two extras. Having any more than that is a huge waste of space.”
11. Mugs
People tend to collect mugs, even though most of us have one favorite mug we use every day.
“It’s nice to have a matching set of eight mugs in case guests come over and you want to serve coffee,” Urgo says. “That being said, you should stock your kitchen for the space you have and the size of your family.”
In other words, if you don’t have much storage space, aim for six mugs instead of eight. The same goes for teacups.
12. Duplicate Tools
Kitchens are often filled with so much stuff that it’s hard to find the can opener when you’re in the mood for soup or the pizza cutter when you want to slice up a pie. So what do you do? Go out and buy a new one, of course.
“When my clients can’t find what they need, they often buy a replacement, which can lead to an accumulation of duplicates,” Boyd says.
Keeping tools organized by type and storing them where you actually use them can help reduce repeat purchases and make your kitchen easier to navigate.
13. Cracked Or Chipped Dishes
This sounds obvious, but experts say you’d be surprised by how many chipped dishes people keep in their cabinets. In addition to being an eyesore, damaged dishes can pose a safety issue. “They actually harbor bacteria,” Fitzgerald says.
Every few months, go through your plates, bowls and serving pieces and check for chips, cracks or sharp edges. Anything damaged should go.
14. Frozen Foods With Freezer Burn
Freezers buy you extra time, but eventually even frozen foods go bad.
“I often find many expired items in my clients’ freezers, which they have forgotten are in there,” Boyd says.
Each food has a different freezer life, but as a general guideline, chicken pieces can last for nine months, shrimp can stay in the freezer for six to 18 months, and vegetable soup is good for two to three months, according to Foodsafety.gov.
If something is coated in freezer burn, the taste and texture are likely already compromised.
15. Empty Jars
Szapiro says he often sees empty glass jars from jam, marmalade, and yogurt stored in people’s kitchens.
They can feel too substantial to throw away, so people hold onto them in case they find a use for them later. But unless you have a firm plan, there’s no need to let empty jars take over your cabinets.
Place them in the recycling bin instead. Recycled glass can be used to make new bottles and jars, as well as construction materials like tiles and countertops. The process can also help reduce carbon emissions and landfill waste.
16. Anything You Haven’t Used In Three Years
When decluttering a kitchen, it’s important to consider your actual lifestyle and cooking habits.
If you’re a vegetarian, you probably don’t need a large turkey roasting pan. If you don’t bake, there’s no reason to hang onto muffin tins and cake pans.
“You want a useful kitchen that has the room for things that you use often,” says Szapiro. “If you haven’t used something in three years, it’s time to give it away.”
