Many years ago, when I first started my quest to learn how to cook, my cabinet was fairly bare. I started with the true basics: salt and pepper. I also had a few other beginner seasonings or spices: lemon pepper, garlic salt and powder, onion salt and powder, Italian seasonings, and cinnamon. At the time, I didn’t even have a spice cabinet, just a cabinet and it was filled with my meager amount of spices and lots of dried pasta.
As I learned more, an actual spice cabinet began to develop. I added the base spices that combined to make Italian seasoning: basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme. I got a little wild and purchased some crushed red pepper flakes and nutmeg, which I had no clue what it should be used for. I also got the base spices for developing a flavorful chili: cumin, chili powder, and coriander. I had moved from a cabinet of some spices and dried pasta to a cabinet shelf dedicated to spices only.
Everything in the spice cabinet completely changed once I started cooking with wild game. The cabinet went from basic, everyday spices to a giant messy collection of every spice under the sun: sage, marjoram, mace, mustard seed, white pepper, dill, tarragon, celery seed, turmeric, caraway, fennel seed. The list could go on and on! The cabinet was stuffed full of bottles and tins all stacked upon each other in order to make room. And forget convenience, as finding anything in there requires pulling out, and probably spilling, most of the contents on the shelf.
When I received the opportunity to review the spice steps from YouCopia, my first inclination was to reject the offer. I didn’t see how a review for a cabinet organizer would be beneficial to my readers. However, I opened my cabinet and immediately the mess made me change my mind. No matter how much wild game I cook, it is never the same experience twice. I use so many spices because I work with a variety of meats: elk, deer, pronghorn, turkey, pheasant, fish, even crab! And I figured if my spice cabinet looked this way, other sportsmen are probably experiencing the same dilemma. So I decided to give the review a shot.
The four-step spice step holds up to 24 spice bottles and includes pre-printed labels for bottles (which just a note: bottles are not included) and also blank labels for creating your own It measures 10.8″ deep x 11.4″ wide x 3.7″ high. There is no assembly required, and set-up simply requires pushing down the little wire kickstand on the back of the unit and sliding it into the cabinet space.
The size of the shelf I use for my spice area is 11.5″ deep x 19.75″ wide x 7.5″ tall. So, the spice step does not fill the entire area, and instead leaves an area of open space that is a little over 8″ wide. This was fine with me because I could use the space for some of the taller and bulkier items, like the giant tin of Cajun seasoning I have.
I have a mixture of both spice bottles and tins. The first thing I learned when filling the cabinet back up was the step does not accommodate both the tins and the bottles together very well. The bottles are too tall and completely cover the tins. This does not make anything any easier to see in the cabinet or to remove from the cabinet. So, I would say that it is not a great option if you are looking for something that will hold both of these items in one area.
That being said, the step works great for stacking either just tins or just bottles. Since I have more spice tins than I do bottles, I started with organizing those first. As you can see in the picture, the tins are still a little bit difficult to read past the first shelf, but I could at least make out the top of the word and get an idea of what I was looking for. Pulling a desired tin out from the cabinet was easy and I didn’t have to move anything in order to get what I wanted out. I also used the four sections to organize my spices. The first step has my most used cooking spices. The second I put baking seasonings like ginger and cinnamon. I put the rest on the back two steps. All-in-all, it isn’t the perfect set-up for spice tins, but it is much better than what I had before.
In my second organization attempt of the cabinet, I used the spice step solely for bottles. This is definitely the best and most efficient use of the step. I used the labels that were included and I was able to easily read and locate any spice I wanted. The pre-printed labels actually covered most of the spices I had in my cabinet. There were blanks to fill in the ones that were a little more uncommon, such as mace. Also, the labels don’t really work on bottles with a metal screw on lid because there isn’t quite enough room on the lid for the label. I didn’t actually find that to be much a problem because I just put those bottles down front.
So, to sum things up, I am pretty pleased with the spice step. It is a relatively inexpensive ($15.99 on Amazon.com) way to organize all the bottles and tins in the spice cabinet. The step is constructed from solid plastic that is easy to clean. The wire kickstand is tightly secured and there was no wobble or swaying as I started to place the bottles on the step. Everything feels very sturdy and secure. It did make the cabinet much more organized and easy to use. If you are interested in purchasing a YouCopia Spice Steps 4-Tier Cabinet Rack Organizer, visit the following link: http://www.youcopia.com/products/24-bottle-spicesteps
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this YouCopia SpiceSteps 4-Tier Cabinet Spice Rack Organizer free from YouCopia as part of a fuelmyblog.com review campaign. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I also do not receive any type of compensation for using the link included on this review or for purchasing a YouCopia Spice Steps 4-Tier Cabinet Rack Organizer. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
