3 Tips For How a Well-Planned Kitchen Can Help You Stay Raw
by Raw Chef Kristen Suzanne of Kristen’s Raw
Having a well-planned raw food kitchen is an important key to succeeding with a raw diet. This includes the foods you keep stocked as well as the kitchen appliances and gadgets you have. The trick is to make everything as streamlined as possible, almost so you don’t have to think twice about it. Below are 3 tips for keeping a well-planned raw kitchen.
1) Produce on deck!
Keeping fresh produce on your counter is a great way to entice you (and family members) to eat raw breakfasts and snacks. In the morning, most people are short on time so if you have grapefruit, oranges, bananas, apples, etc within arm’s reach when you’re flying out the door, well, you’re going to grab that instead of finding yourself in the drive through ordering a fat filled donut or muffin. Equally effective for snack time… as you wander into the kitchen with a grumbling tummy, your eyes will see the gorgeous produce beckoning you! I like using produce baskets that have 2-3 shelves per unit so you can take advantage of the space.
2) Calling all appliances!
Similar to having some of your fresh produce enticing you on the counter, you should keep your raw food appliances within reach and easy to access. I know some people don’t like too much on their counters, it clutters it up they say. Well, I’m here to tell you that this is the way to do it! If it’s easy to access and use, then by golly, you’ll use it. If you have to drag out that heavy equipment daily, sometimes multiple times a day, then odds are that you won’t. Not only that, but out of sight out of mind holds true. Use the flip side of that notion to your advantage! When you see all your cool raw food appliances shiny and begging you for attention, you’ll use them. To help, I have my juicer closest to the sink because juicing requires lots of freshly washed produce as well as washing of multiple juicer parts. Next to my juicer is my blender (I use this the most), but only requires washing the carafe. I have my food processor on my counter (although it doesn’t get as much use, so it’s tucked away in the corner). My dehydrator is actually in my hallway on top of a rack that I have filled with raw snacks, etc… more on that next.
3) Staying stocked for success!
The rack I mentioned above? Well, that’s filled with bulk-bought raw nuts, seeds, dried fruits, granolas, bars, kale chips, etc (I keep some of those items in the freezer, too, more on that in the next blog post). Having easy access to these and having them in sight is a huge tip for success. Easy access means grabbing those things first instead of eating unhealthy foods. Just as important is having these things in sight, which serve as a reminder of your awesome lifestyle. It inspires and empowers you, not to mention it creates a conversation when guests are over.
What about my pantry? Well, the rack is used primarily for extras of the things – I buy in bulk – by the case – for many things to save money and so I don’t run out! Once I open a package of something, I move it to my pantry.
If you start with those three tips for planning your raw food kitchen, you’ll be well on your way to staying raw with ease. But, that’s not all. In my next post, we’ll dive into the refrigerator, freezer, and learn some other nifty ways to stay organized in your raw food kitchen. Stay tuned!
The Raw Divas Kitchen Connection Photo Collection
I don’t know about you but seeing photos like these here from Kristen here really inspires me to get into my kitchen and fit out each and every nook and cranny to be exactly as I would like it – organised, clutter-free and well-stocked with beautiful goodies. It’s not just a gorgeous gourmet raw food photo that gets me excited, it’s a picture of a kitchen that you can see is just brimming with possibilities for creating and crafting with ease. We want to see more kitchen photos like this one! We’ll share them here on the blog and on Facebook as an exchange of preparation inspiration and ideas.
So here’s what we’d love to do. Send us in a photo of the absolute favourite part of your own kitchen – your smoothie corner, or your stocked shelves, or your fridge overflowing with greens – any part that you feel excited about and that you feel helps you to eat more raw food consistently. Email your photo to [email protected], let me know you’d be happy to share it on the blog or on Facebook, and in return we’ll acknowledge your contribution by sending you a copy of Divaliscious! Photo entries close next Friday 19th August!
Leave a comment below telling us which one kitchen organising task your inspired to take on after reading this post!