How To Decide Which Cookbooks Are Worth Tossing While Decluttering Your Kitchen

Cookbooks, it turns out, have a lot in common with clothes. As in, you might have accumulated too many, but you probably hold onto them "just in case." Maybe those pants will come back in style, and maybe one day you'll host a '60s-themed dinner party and need to know how to make Chicken à la King or some sort of elaborate and terrifying Jell-O mold. Maybe. But more likely, that dusty old cookbook that you haven't opened since forever ago is just taking up valuable space. That's all to say — if you want to declutter your kitchen, you should set aside time specifically to organize your cookbooks. To decide which ones to toss, get rid of any that don't fit in your dedicated cookbook space or that you don't use often enough.

You'll need to start by assessing the space you have available for cookbooks. You should follow the container method, meaning that you should only keep enough cookbooks to fit into the space you have. Next, gather all the cookbooks you own to take stock of your collection. Which ones do you reference more than a few times a year? Set those in the keep pile. Other good ones to hold onto are those that overview an entire type of cuisine or provide a broad, instructional approach, like how to cook fresh pasta or publications from your favorite chefs and food bloggers. Some cookbooks you may have an easier time parting with include those that are outdated, highlight a specific kitchen appliance (think Vitamix or Crock-Pot), are weight loss/diet-focused, or are holiday-specific. These likely aren't used as often.

If you're having trouble parting ways with cookbooks that you consistently return to but for just one or two recipes, consider photocopying those pages, putting them in protective sleeves, and creating a binder with different sections. Yes, you could find those recipes online, but for some people it's not the same. If you only use certain pages of all your cookbooks, consider condensing them all into one binder that's only filled with the meals you enjoy the most.

Once you've decluttered them, organize your remaining cookbooks in a way that works for you. Some people favor the aesthetically-pleasing look of arranging them by spine color, while others prefer a more practical approach of sectioning by geography (Mexican, Thai, etc.) or specific topics like grilling, baking, and seafood. Some of your most beautiful cookbooks can also be incorporated as art in your home.

Once you have sufficiently decluttered and have a pile of cookbooks you're ready to get rid of, you can donate them for someone else to enjoy. Most public libraries, or their associated groups, accept donations of used books, which they will sell to help with fundraising efforts. You can also donate them to a website like Better World Books or to your local thrift store.