I've been on quest lately to find a functional and attractive storage solution for my many (and expensive) spices. I've got the run of the mill counter spice rack that holds 20 spices. Who uses just 20 spices? Especially if you cook ethnically. Heck, I probably have almost 15 indian spices alone. So, with this in mind, I'm looking for a solution for storage of approximately 40-45 spices that will a. keep the spices fresh and b. not be ugly;)

The only thing I've found that comes close to what I'm looking for is the dean and deluca silver tin system but it seems a tad pricey at $200? Maybe I'm just being cheap?

Your suggestions are greatly appreciated

Brad,

Not knowing what your kitchen set-up is, it is a little hard to give a best choice. Here are several options that are much less expensive than Dean & Deluca:

http://www.containerstore.com/shop/kitchen/spiceStorage

Best wishes,

--Alvin

As far as attractive goes, this spice rack, from Traveler's Lunchbox, is by far the most attractive I have seen - I so so so want this set up, it's an old printer type case - One day!

In the meantime I simply use the small plastic containers and label them with a labeling machine. It is not so pretty, but when you have as many spices as we do here at Rouxbe, you need to think about practical as well.

Carol (who also happens to be a loyal Rouxbe user) from Tablefare also has some really good spice containers.

Hope this helps! Good luck.

Dawn, those printer case are sweet!

Alvin, I have a fairly large kitchen so I'm dont need anything that is compact or apartment size.

I've read a few places that light and heat will cause the spices to go bad faster. Does anyone have any info on maintaining the integrity of the spice? Also, do you guys think theres a huge difference between say generic superstore spices in bags and the super expensive bottled ones you find in gourmet stores?

I buy my spices in busy stores, that sell a lot of spices, that way I know they haven't been on the shelves for months and months. I do not spend a ton on my spices. I just buy them in smaller quantities (within reason), so that I also don't have them on my shelves forever and ever.

I'd been looking for a spice keeping system/jars for a few months, looking and looking, and thinking cheepo and simple - until I saw the Tablefare SpiceCare jars mentioned above. I bought them almost instantly even thought they were more than I wanted to spend. I've had them for more than a month now and I absolutely love them. The best part - almost any measuring spoon - even the Tablespoon - fits in the mouth. Wonderful. My husband also purchased me a gob of new spices from worldspice.com It's a Seattle store I've been in, they send you whole spices or grind it fresh for you, 1oz or more of anything. It's so nice to know my cumin wasn't ground 6months ago.

Thanks for sharing your feedback Crystal...really good to know. Now I am jealous! One day I will get all of my many spices organized like this. For now they are at least (mostly) alphabetical :-) Cheers!

While I haven't gotten around to it yet, I like Alton Brown's rather nerdy solution of velcroing labelled tins to the inside of cupboard doors.

The tins protect the spices from light, which is said to degrade spices more rapidly, and velcroing them to the doors allows storage space where there wasn't any before.

It's an easy way to organize and locate them when needed, and it's cheap and cheerful.

Dang, I should really get on that. :)

I will never find the perfect spice storage, it's like looking for the perfect purse or perfect shoes. I looked at Brad's mentioned Dean & Deluca, and that is for 34 spices in the jars on the heavy guage rack, so it's really not so bad for 195. 34 high-quality spices would cost enough to make that rack a not-quite-so-bad idea, assuming they are fresh. I like the look of it, although it is too expensive for me too, they do have one for less that doesn't include spices. I spent about 4 hours online studying spice racks, and didn't find a perfect one yet. I am taking to the idea of putting up a rack system like Rosle's open kitchen rack system. It would work out if I did a little at a time. I like their spice racks and the flexibility of the whole system. It's awesome to look at and to customize all the various item storage to current use and whim. It would take a lot out of the drawers and cabinets. Does anyone have one?

The SpiceStack is a cabinet organizer for your store-bought spices (holds 18 or 27 full size bottles). Made of ABS plastic in the USA, its a functional (and affordable) "rack" that will last forever. The unique drawer design allows you to find your spices quickly and stay organized while cooking. Seriously, this thing works. Check it out at SpiceStack.com.

If you want to preserve herbs and seeds, they have to be out of light and in a not so hot environment.
Find a dark glass container with a good cover and then use a good spice grinder. You do not need any fancy contraption. Keep them out of light and throw them out after one year.

The spices in the corner grocery store are often quite old, are very expensive by weight, come in quantities you will probably not use before they go off and come in a hodge-podge of containers that dont look nice and in fact just take up a lot of space.

I turned the whole thing on its head. Whole Foods sells spices by weight, and you'll spend 1/20th the money on the spices (bay leaves are about 2 cents each for example) and you get what you'll use. Why buy 2 ounces of mustard seed when you need 1/8th a teaspoon on a recipe youre not sure youll ever make again.

You get these spices in a resealable plastic baggie which takes up a fraction of the space and with a decent size air-tight container, you can keep ALL of your spices. You can also buy some baggies, 500 or so for $10 in various sizes and put your existing spices in baggies.

You should date each one so you know how old it is as well. Old fashioned spice racks and spice bottles are a lot of money for very little value.

Find an "ethnic" food store or spice market to get some of the more difficult to find spices and youll find that they often sell in bulk as well. Also, when friends travel abroad have them bring you local spices, in a baggie in an air-tight box, they will keep for a while.