Smart Ways to Organize Foil, Plastic Wrap, and Parchment Paper for a More Efficient Kitchen

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From setting up a mise en place to stacking mixing bowls together, staying organized plays a key part in efficient meal-making. No one wants to waste precious time looking for an ingredient or implement, especially during a critical step in the recipe—and the same goes for aluminum foil, parchment paper, plastic wrap, and wax paper, products you probably rely on day in and day out.

If you've ever tussled with these kitchen essentials, searching, in vain, for a box or finding the box mangled due to less-than-ideal storage, there's a solution at hand. We reached out to baking experts and a meal-prep whiz to find out their methods for resolving issues of crumpled boxes and disorderly rolls. Here's how to organize foil and plastic wrap according to the pros.

Related: What's the Best Way to Store Flour and Other Baking Staples

5 Ways to Organize Foil and Plastic Wrap

Some cooks like to stow their paper, plastic, and foil goods in a cabinet, while others prefer to keep them in sight, like on a trolley cart. There's no right or wrong way, as long as the solution works with the job at hand.

Dedicate a Drawer

Nicole Presley, recipe developer, Mexican-American baker, author of ¡Viva Desserts!, and co-author of the forthcoming cookbook ¡Buenos Días! has a kitchen cabinet drawer that glides out on a roller and is dedicated strictly to plastic wrap, parchment paper, and aluminum foil. "Other people might find this a waste of space. I find it so useful and convenient for my kitchen style," she says. She uses parchment paper for cakes, aluminum foil for flan, and plastic wrap for empanada dough, arranging the items in the drawer by preference, or how often they're used.

Sarah Kieffer, author of 100 Morning Treats and 100 Cookies and the The Vanilla Bean Blog, takes a similar tactic, keeping the rolls tucked away in a drawer and pulling them out as needed. If you want to take your in-drawer storage to the next level, use a bamboo organizer, which will also hold sandwich, quart, and large zipper bags.

Use a Wall-Mounted Organizer

Tiny space? Look to your walls. "For a smaller kitchen or to hide foil, plastic wrap, wax, or parchment paper, use a wall-mount organizational system with a slicer," says Catherine McCord, the author of several cookbooks, including Meal Prep Magic (which emphasizes kitchen organization and prep-ahead recipes) and the founder of the family-oriented recipe site Weelicious.

Use a Vertical Organizer

Storing the rolls in a kitchen cabinet can be tricky (and messy), so the best way to control the sprawl and keep them organized is often with a vertical organizer, such as one made of bamboo or vinyl-coated wire. Stacked in the organizer on a shelf, the rolls and boxes are contained.

Opt for an Under-Shelf Organizer

These are generally smaller than vertical organizers, but take up less space in your cabinet; they can be a good solution if you only have a couple of rolls—say plastic wrap and foil—in your kitchen.