Kitchen Routines: Tips for Simple Daily Habits

If you asked me as a young girl what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d give you a handful of answers. I had big dreams and big aspirations. One of those answers, more importantly, would be a stay at home mom.

Now that I’m a wife and a mom, I’m learning how to enjoy my role in the kitchen.

Yup. I said it. I love my role in the kitchen.

I’d say I was natural as a wife and as a mother. But I was certainly not natural in the kitchen.

Once we married I had no other choice but to figure it out. We both worked and someone had to take up cooking… and it wasn’t my husband. Ha!

I cooked a ton of pasta and washed even more dishes by hand. Our rental home was quaint and nothing fancy. But I learned that didn’t mean my meals had to be the same way.

Before too long a love for cooking and successful kitchen routines became second nature.

WHY KITCHEN ROUTINES ARE IMPORTANT

Routines form one of two ways: (1) by nature and/or (2) with work and honing in skills.

Becoming an adult is learning to make choices that grow you, benefit your family and create an efficient atmosphere in your home.

The kitchen is the heart of the home.

Because of this, it’s important to create a kitchen that’s desirable to be in; one that is attractive and functional to the person who spends the most time in it!

If your kitchen is dingy, dirty and inconvenient, you’re never going to want to spend any time in it. So that’s the first thing you need to secure! A kitchen you want to be in.

Kitchen routines only help! Through the years I’ve, in a way, studied what does and does not work for my family by watching and observing my friends, family and others’ sharing their stories online.

Our family is small, which means I can get away with certain kitchen routines that others can’t, and vice versa.

Routines create security, predictability and familiarity.

When something is predictable, it’s comforting and feels safe (in most cases), therefore easing anxiety. Knowing what to expect and what is expected of you can ease fear.

I find it incredibly helpful to know what is expected of me when I’m in my kitchen; knowing where everything is (and keeping it easily accessible – more on that soon) and how to time everything out.

Kitchen routines create opportunities for gatherings that are refreshing for everyone involved, including the cook!

KITCHEN ROUTINES THAT USHER IN SUCCESS

There are several routines we implement that set us up for success. Some of these routines are based on the time of day, and others not. Some are daily, some are weekly. There are even some routines we only do maybe once a month.

Most of our routines happen in the evening, and because of that I want to share a broken-up list with you beginning at the end of the day:

Evening

1. Clean Up Dinner: Always clean up dinner before relaxing or finishing the evening. It’s so easy to put it off, but I promise you, life will be significantly more enjoyable if you take the extra steps to put the food away sooner than later. If you wait until later, you will anticipate that not-so-fun part of cooking – cleaning up. Just get it done as soon as you can!
   1. Pro-Tip: Clean as you cook! When you have 5 minutes here and there, take a moment to rinse out a dirty pot, load something in the dishwasher or sweep the crumbs on the floor into a pile for later.
      
2. Load Dish Washer: If you’re graced with the beautiful creation of a dishwasher, use it! Keep your dishes rinsed (remove food waste; compost or garbage disposal preferably) throughout the day and at the end of the evening, loading your dishwasher will be significantly easier and more enjoyable to do. You don’t have to run it immediately. We run ours right before heading to bed!

3. Close The Kitchen: What does this mean? It means clean it tidy before heading to bed. Wipe the counters, sweep the floors, clear the sink and tidy the countertops before turning off the lights. Closing the kitchen sets your morning up for success!

Afternoon

1. Keep Lunch Simple: As a stay at home mom, I’ve learned lunch is best when kept simple. This means we use a lot of leftovers and snacks. One of my go-to’s is a simple charcuterie board of meats, cheeses and fruit typically! Lunch does not have to be a full meal or anything extravagant.
   
2. Rinse Dishes: Again, let your dishes pile up in the sink if you must, but don’t allow them to pile up dirty. Discard those itty pieces of food waste and give that dish a 2-second rinse. This will make your dishwashing job later much easier, and keep your house smelling nicer!
   
3. Prep Meat for Dinner: Mid-day is the best time to remove any frozen meat and allow it to thaw at room temperature or in a bowl of warm water. Take advantage of your time and make your dinner prep easier for yourself by starting in the afternoon.

Morning

1. Clean Up Coffee Bar: Another “luxury” we included in our home renovation was a separate nook for all of our coffee and teas. Because they have their own space, it’s quite easy for it to become forgotten or dirty. It’s my goal to be on top of the coffee bar, cleaning up grounds and wiping up little spills, every morning. It sets the tone for the rest of my day.
   
2. Run Dishwasher (if not started the night before): Avoid allowing dirty dishes to pile up. If your dishwasher is even close to being full, run it. The trick is staying on top of your kitchen routines before they feel like they have a change to pile up on you!

Regular Cleaning

1. Tidy Kitchen: This could mean a lot of different things for different people. For us, this looks like getting trash to the trash can, getting random dirty dishes in the sink and straightening out the towels. The moment you see something minor that needs tending to, just do it. You’ll thank yourself later!
   
2. Wipe Cabinets: We have painted cabinets, so if we don’t regularly wipe them down, food residues will add up and cleaning won’t be fun later. Every time I wipe my counters, I’m usually wiping a cabinet or two.
   
3. Remove Trash AND Wipe Bin: Don’t, don’t, don’t remove your trash and not wipe down your trash bin. It doesn’t have to be much work. Just grab a cloth and warm water if you must! Keeping a clean trash can will eliminate the unpleasant odors of an icky one.
   
4. Sweep Kitchen Floors: Keeping your kitchen floors swept makes a bigger difference than you’ll know! And it ties into the aesthetics of your kitchen. A clean kitchen is a desirable kitchen to be in.

KITCHEN ROUTINES TIPS & TRICKS

I have a few secrets I’d like to share with you. Okay, they’re not that secret.

I have found a few rhythms in my kitchen that are outside of what people would consider “normal” but work great for me, my role in the kitchen and our lifestyle!

First, keep your most used items accessible, even when it doesn’t make sense. Yes, that means keep your rolling pin, flour and scale on the counter if you must.

For me, this means the corner cabinet that most people would stick dishes or pantry items in is full of ferments, cook books, flour and raw sugar cane. Why? Because I use all of these items daily!

Don’t be afraid to make your kitchen work for you.

Second, make your kitchen a place you enjoy being in! When we remodeled our home, I knew this was my chance to create many spaces that drew me in – my kitchen being one of them!

If your kitchen is aesthetically displeasing, you’ll be that much less likely to want to be in it.

What’s this mean then?

Well. It means you make your kitchen what you want! If that means you want a warm light on the counter, you go thrift one. If you want cute little mason jars on a wooden cutting board, you fill them and make it happen.

If you want a new backsplash, save up and find one that warms your heart and makes you want to be in the kitchen.

Make your kitchen a space that serves you, draws you in and supports your role.

NOT-SO-OFTEN KITCHEN ROUTINES

Not every kitchen routine for the homemaker is an everyday, or every month, kind of routine. I have several things in my kitchen that don’t get attention but maybe once or twice a year. Let me share a few with you to perhaps take the pressure off!

Deep Clean The Refrigerator: No, I don’t clean mine often. I will wipe up any messes like leaking milk; juice leaking from my five year old’s cup; or fermented jars of goodies that get bumped or knocked over that didn’t have a tight enough lid. You get the idea. Only once or twice a year do I actually remove items from my refrigerator and remove glass shelves in order to scrub and clean them. It’s just not necessary! 

Reorganize My Pantry: I am often straightening out ingredients, boxes and jars as I stocked them into the pantry every week. But only once or twice a year do I actually pull everything out, date check it, and reorganize. Again, if you keep a somewhat tidy kitchen pantry as you go, it’s not necessary to deep clean often.

HELPFUL KITCHEN ROUTINES FOR SUCCESS

You might be asking yourself how you’re going to do this.

Don’t worry. I’ve got you!

All that I have shared with you are simple steps to add into your existing kitchen routines. If you find that you’re struggling with maintaining them, perhaps it’s best to just start with a few until you can determine if they’re effective and helpful for your home.

You could also consider adding schedules like a check list or a simple cleaning schedule that you can give special attention daily or weekly. 

Implementing schedules and routines like these truly creates strong foundations for a successful kitchen and home.

At the end of the day, you’ll be grateful you put the hard work into creating kitchen routines that grow your love for homemaking, strengthen the bond in your family and positively influence the atmosphere in your home.

If you haven’t yet, go follow this series on my YouTube channel where I feature four weeks of different homemaking routines, skills and hacks!

With love,

Courtney Michel