c/fridge-detective

I hit 37 condiment bottles in my fridge and I'm not proud of it

I was cleaning out the door shelves and actually counted them all. There's everything from three kinds of mustard to four nearly-empty hot sauces. It explains why I can never find the soy sauce and why my partner gets mad when the door won't close right. I think I just keep buying new ones instead of finishing the old ones. It's a real problem. Anyone else have a condiment collection that's gotten out of hand?

My fridge's mystery spill took two days to track down, not the quick wipe I expected.

Appreciation post: I finally stopped fighting my fridge

I used to think I needed to organize everything into neat containers, but that just made me avoid putting stuff away. Last week I just started stacking takeout boxes on one shelf and it cut my cleanup time in half. Anyone else find that a little mess actually helps you cook more?

My grandma saw my fridge and just shook her head

She was over last month and opened it, saw my leftover takeout boxes and half a jar of salsa. She said, 'Cole, this isn't a pantry, you need some real food in here.' I mean, she's right, I mostly just heat stuff up now. Anyone else's fridge get judged by family?

My fridge door shelf collapsed at 2 AM last Tuesday, dumped a bottle of sriracha and a jar of pickles everywhere.

I was half asleep and just stood there in the mess for a solid minute before grabbing a roll of paper towels. Anyone else had a fridge shelf just give out on them?

My fridge is a mess but it tells a story of my week

I snapped a pic of the chaos after a long weekend. It's got a half empty jar of salsa, a container of leftover chili from Friday, and three different kinds of hot sauce. You can also see a bag of limes and a block of cheddar that's seen better days. Anyone else's fridge look like a taco night exploded in there?

So I finally tried that weird jar of pickled garlic my neighbor gave me six months ago

I thought fridge detective posts were just for show until I saw my own mess

Honestly, I always figured people just staged those messy fridge pics for laughs. But last week, my partner took a shot of our actual fridge before we cleaned it out. Tbh, looking at the photo later, it was a total story. There were three half-empty jars of salsa, a block of cheddar from two months ago, and like six different hot sauces. My buddy saw it and guessed right away that we eat a lot of tacos and breakfast burritos, which is spot on. He even called out our lazy weeknight stir-fry habit from the sad looking bell peppers and soy sauce packet. Has anyone else had their eating habits perfectly called out just from a fridge pic?

Looking at my fridge now versus my old photos from 2019

I was on the phone with my mom last night and she asked if I still had that same jar of fancy mustard from three years ago. I opened the fridge door and just stared at it. Back then it was all meal kits and craft beer, now it's mostly condiments, a block of cheese, and some wilting cilantro. She laughed and said 'Your fridge tells a story, honey, and right now it says you order a lot of Thai food.' She's not wrong. Has anyone else's fridge contents totally shifted in the last few years?

My brother said I'd never finish that jar of kimchi, but I just used the last of it in some fried rice.

I tried storing my leftover pizza in a ziploc bag instead of the box and it actually stayed crisp

My fridge is a disaster zone but I found a weird trick that actually helped

I was staring at the chaos of expired yogurt and mystery containers last Tuesday and decided to just pull everything out and group it by how fast it spoils. Now the dairy is on one shelf, veggies in the crisper, and condiments are actually together. Has anyone else tried organizing by shelf life instead of food type?

My fridge door hinge gave out and dumped a jar of pickles everywhere

It happened yesterday afternoon, just as I was putting away groceries. The bottom hinge snapped clean off, the door swung down, and a full jar of dill spears shattered on the kitchen floor. Anyone know a good way to get that vinegar smell out of grout?

My fridge door hinge gave out last Thursday and it was a total mess

The bottom hinge on my Kenmore just snapped, so the door was hanging open all night. I had to throw out a whole gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, and some leftover chili from my favorite spot, The Corner Diner. Has anyone else had a fridge hinge fail, and what did you do to fix it without calling a repair person?

My neighbor's comment about my fridge door changed how I see my own cooking

I was grabbing a soda and my neighbor, who was helping me move a chair, glanced in and said, 'Wow, you must really like making sauces from scratch.' I looked at the door later and saw it: three kinds of mustard, two open jars of jam, homemade pickles, and a bottle of fish sauce. I realized I collect condiments for recipes I try once and then forget. Has anyone else found their fridge tells a story they didn't know?

Okay, so I spent $40 on a 'smart' egg tray that beeps when your eggs are old, and my fridge is now a chaotic museum of condiments because the thing needs its own shelf.

The beeping tray is currently buried under three kinds of hot sauce and a half-eaten tub of hummus, which I guess means my eggs are officially lost again.

I finally counted the jars of hot sauce in my fridge door

I was trying to find the mustard and realized I had to move like, seven different bottles. So I counted them. There are 14. Fourteen different hot sauces, from a basic Tabasco to some ghost pepper stuff my brother gave me. I mean, I knew I liked spicy food, but seeing that number written down was a shock. It explains why almost every meal I cook starts with me grabbing one of those bottles. Has anyone else hit a weirdly high number on one specific fridge item?

Tried to clean out my fridge before the photo... that was a 2-hour mistake

My fridge looked like a crime scene after a week of meal prep for my sister's wedding

I spent last Tuesday making 50 mini quiches and 3 gallons of pasta salad for the rehearsal dinner. My fridge was just a chaotic stack of containers and spilled sauce. Looking at the photo, I realized I basically only cook for huge groups now! Anyone else get stuck in a single cooking mode after a big event?

My fridge after I bought a $30 jar of fancy pickles that taste like perfume

I saw them at the farmers market and the guy said they were 'life changing', but now they're just taking up space next to my ketchup, so what's your weirdest fridge regret buy?

My fridge after a failed attempt at meal prep last Sunday

It's just a sea of half-used sour cream, wilted cilantro, and a single sad bell pepper because I gave up halfway through making fajitas. Anyone else's cooking plans ever completely fall apart like this?