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This post contains products independently chosen (and loved) by our editors and writers. Food52 earns a commission on qualifying purchases of the products we link to.<\/em><\/p>\n Look inside my small (and I mean really small<\/em>) kitchen, and you might not instantly guess that I love to cook. But I\u2019ve never let a lack of space stop me from making any recipe, be it a homemade lasagna<\/a> or an elaborate birthday cake<\/a>. With careful planning, the right organization tools, and a few tips, a galley kitchen like mine can actually be the best kind of kitchen because everything you need is right at hand.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how to make the most of your cooking space\u2014no matter how tiny\u2014and set yourself up for stress-free meal prep.<\/p>\n In a small space, you must be vigilant about what resides on the countertops; only things that are truly used daily should be there. I know it\u2019s not convenient to pull out the food processor<\/a>, stand mixer<\/a>, or blender<\/a> every time you want to use it, but if space is limited, it\u2019s worth the mild inconvenience to leave countertops clear. You can make room for those excess countertop items in drawers and cabinets by moving the rarely used items out of the kitchen altogether (I\u2019m looking at you, extra-large Le Creuset Dutch Oven<\/a>). In my own kitchen, I decided to ditch my utensil crock<\/a> and moved all my spatulas<\/a>, wooden spoons<\/a>, and tongs<\/a> to a drawer to regain precious counter space.<\/p>\n Since you\u2019ll be stashing as much as you can away from the counters, you want to make sure you can easily access these items. I find drawers make it much easier to reach the back of a cabinet than a plain old shelf. If you\u2019ve got a mix of drawers and shelves, the things you reach for most should be in the drawers, while those less frequently used tools, like special cake pans<\/a>, can go on the back reaches of shelves. If you don\u2019t have many lower drawers, consider installing pull-out cabinet shelves<\/a>, which are as close as you can get to retrofitting drawers into your existing cabinets. In my own kitchen, I placed an order for more interior drawers for the IKEA cabinets I installed eight years ago\u2014it\u2019s never too late for improvement!<\/p>\n This is controversial, I know, but I am in favor of decanting pantry items into glass jars. Yes, it is fussy, but in a small space I find that they fit much more neatly into cabinets than a mishmash of boxes and bags, which amounts to less chaos overall. I up-cycle tomato sauce jars and the like, but for things that need to be stored airtight, you can\u2019t beat old-school clip-top jars<\/a>.<\/p>\n The walls of your kitchen have great potential for additional storage, but you\u2019ll need to be careful not to overwhelm your space with too many things hanging from the wall. A wall-mounted magnetic knife rack is smart because it takes up so much less room than in-drawer knife storage or a knife block\u2014plus it keeps your knives within reach. A hanging rail is also always wise (IKEA\u2019s Kungsfors rail<\/a> is a classic budget option, but for something luxe, I am gaga for deVOL\u2019s brass rails<\/a>).<\/p>\n
\n1. Clear the countertops<\/h3>\n
2. Base Cabinet Drawers > Shelves<\/h3>\n
3. Consider decanting<\/h3>\n
4. Use your vertical spaces strategically<\/h3>\n
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