Every January, I like to do a fridge deep clean. It just happens to coincide with the time of the year when we are all craving a bit more organization and a few more veggiesโso it really is the perfect time to dive into such a project.
It’s a perfect mental, visual, and literal reset for your eating. Trust me, it’s a lot easier to eat a well-balanced diet when your fridge doesn’t look like this.
![Brunette woman sitting in front of an open fridge with a mop bucket and bottle of cleaner](https://wholefully.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/before-messy-fridge.jpg)
So grab your rubber gloves and a wicked big trash bag (you know you have some science experiments hanging out in there), and let’s get to work. First up, we gotta get to cleaning.
Empty it all out
Out with the old, in with the new! You need to literally pull every single thing out of that fridge. Toss anything that is expired or iffy. I also recommend tossing anything you don’t want to eat (or donating if it isn’t opened). We feed a lot of stuff to our chickens and the compost gods during fridge clean-out day.
![Open empty fridge, with all the contents on the floor in front of it](https://wholefully.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/empty-fridge.jpg)
Clean it all up
While everything is out, go ahead and do a deep clean. I fill up a bucket and go to town, washing every surface in the fridge.
You might be tempted to skip this step, but trust me, there is something about a sparkling clean fridge that just inspires better eating. And while it’s all empty, you might as well, right?
![Empty refrigerator shelves that have been cleaned](https://wholefully.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/clean-fridge-shelves.jpg)
Get Organized
Now it’s time to put everything back in. To organize my fridge, I stocked up on all shapes and sizes of clear fridge bins. These bins are great because they help divide up the space while still keeping the goodies in clear view.
![Refrigerator shelf with herbs in a jar, mini bell peppers in a clear bin, and a carton of almond milk](https://wholefully.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/top-shelf-clean-fridge.jpg)
Break Out of the Crisper
These clear bins also help you expand past your crisper drawer. Fruits and veggies are supposed to be at least half of what’s on our plate, but the crisper drawers are maybe 20% of the fridgeโit doesn’t make sense! So don’t limit yourself to just the crisper drawers. Use bins and shelves to store fruits and veggies throughout the fridge.
![Close-up of crisper drawers filled with vegetables](https://wholefully.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/crisper-drawer-fridge.jpg)
Also, if you happen to have a fridge with an opaque crisper (I did at my last house), use those drawers for other foodsโcheese, meats, eggsโand move the fruits and veggies up and out to the light of day! Every time you open that fridge, you want to be inspired by all the colorful produce waiting for you. Opaque crispers are where produce goes to die.
Store Fruits and Veggies at Eye Level
I highly recommend prepping your snacking fruits and veggies when you get home from the grocery store. Wash them, chop them, and store them in clear glass food storage containers (which I also grabbed at Meijer) at eye level. Just like with the clear bins, having these fresh fruits and veggies ready to go and visible makes them the easy choiceโand with all of our busy lives, the easy choice so often wins when it comes to what’s on our plates.
![Close up of produce organized into glass containers in a refrigerator](https://wholefully.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/vegetables-glass-containers.jpg)
And it’s that simple!