They say (whoever “they” really are) if your small space is organized, and things are easy to find and easy to use, you will be more productive. When you’re getting ready to pack your RV, the last thing you want to do is buy stuff you don’t need, or not have something you might need. Cooking in your RV is definitely different. You might have a very large kitchen like I do, but in the end, it’s still not like a sticks and bricks home. Your storage is smaller, and you won’t have room for every single thing you think you need. So you have to pick and choose what is most important. I don’t know if I would consider Justin and I true definition of minimalist, but we are definitely the type of people who don’t have more than we need in the kitchen. When I first started this journey I had a few large items I took with me. After 9 months on the road, I had not used them, so our daughter was the receiver when we visited for Thanksgiving. Each family will have different needs. I’m here to share my list of things we use and love in our kitchen.
Whoever invented collapsible things is an angel in my book! Almost everything I have is collapsible, and I can honestly say the stuff I have bought, has been used quite a lot, and is in perfect condition. Even 4 years later.
Wanted to share a quick video of a make over we did on our theater seats cup holder.
I hope my list of things helps you! When I was preparing for full-time RV life, I was very lost. I had piles and piles of things and just not sure where to start or what to keep. In the 4 years, we’ve now lived on the road, I have learned a lot. I hope my advice helps you.
Chopper – I love this! It was definitely on the top list when moving into the RV. We use this so often, and every time we do, we say out loud “I love this thing”. It really does make cooking so easy.
Collapsible dish drainer – I love how this collapses and fits into my small hide-a-way spot. 4 years later, I still have the same dish drainer and still love it.
Collapsible salad spinner – I thought I would have to give up my salad spinner! I didn’t!
Skip the collapsible mixing bowls! Ask me how I know! If you’re one who uses mixing bowls, pick up a great nesting set like this. I ended up purchasing a collapsible bowl set and failed to look at the sizes carefully. I’m pretty sure my cereal bowls are bigger.
Pizza Pan that actually fits – We have a hard time with pans in our oven. Plus we use our convection oven and that’s even harder. Highly recommend this pan! We love the way it cooks pizza. We make our own pizza dough and freeze it, and for a quick meal, we pull it out and this pan works great.
14×12 baking sheet. Hard to find a baking sheet that will fit in my small little oven! This fits great!
I don’t recommend collapsible measuring cups. They really don’t save all that much room, and I don’t think they measure correctly. Get one good set and don’t keep duplicates. We like these.
Meat chopper – WHO KNEW? This has so many uses. It’s one of the top kitchen items I use. I use it to chop hard-boiled eggs, hamburger meat, fruits for over ice cream … so many uses!
Dinner Plate Holder – I still use my regular dishes. I mean who wants to cut steak on a paper plate? This made it so much easier to store my dishes upright.
Locker organizer – If you have a tall cabinet and could use an extra shelf, this fits perfectly in most RV cabinets! Make sure you measure first.
Instant pot – I think every RVer should have this. We have made desserts, meals, yogurt and so many other things in this one pot. It’s also a slow cooker if you want it to be. It’s really a top-notch all-in-one pot.
Sugar/Flour Keeper – If you live in an RV, you just gotta have these. Not only keeps your flour and sugar fresh but keeps bugs and mice out of those bags! Again, PrepWorks is my favorite.
Brown Sugar Keeper – NO MORE hard brown sugar!!!
Snap & Strain – Best. Invention. Ever! Ha!
Magma pots – I know these are expensive, but you won’t be sorry!!! I have used these pots and pans for 18 months and I love them! Just take a look at these and how they nest together for storage. You won’t find a better set of pots and pans. The only complaint I have is that they don’t make a flat “pancake” pan. Ha Ha
Can organizer – This fits perfectly in my pantry! And allows me to stack “up” in my pantry without adding another shelf.
Cereal Keeper – Pretty self-explanatory. Keeps your cereal fresh and the bugs and mice out!
Baskets – I have several of these. They hold my jello, puddings, granola bars, packages of mixes for chili or stew. They are very useful for organizing a pantry.
Under-sink organizer – If you don’t have these, you’re missing out! I have a set in my pantry and 2 sets in my bathroom cabinet, and yet another set in a cabinet by my stove. I can’t tell you how wonderful these are. If you have the height, you can stack them 4 high (2 sets). Check out the pictures on Amazon!
There isn’t an RVer that I know of who hasn’t ended up with a mouse or two in their RV. I would say I’m on the verge of being a clean freak, but yes, we had a mouse family of 5 move in when we were in Montana a few years ago. They got into so much of our dry goods. So that’s when I went “all plastic container”. Here is a helpful tip for keeping them out.
- Peppermint oil – I use oils to diffuse in my house, which is pretty expensive. So I bought this brand to mix with water and a few drops of dish soap to spray outside around my RV. It’s natural, won’t hurt the environment, and … mice (and other rodents) hate the smell of peppermint. It’s probably not super high quality based on the price, but it WORKS GREAT for what we need it for.
Flexible Cutting Boards – Don’t be fooled! Make sure you buy the ones that are textured on the back. They will help them not slide on your counter. Ask me how I know! Ha! TIP: Do you have a refrigerator you have to defrost yourself? If you buy these, and put them on the back of your freezer, on the inside, all you have to do is take out the food, take these cutting boards out, rinse off the ice, and put them back. No more defrosting!
Steel Wool – we put this in all the sections under the sink pipes and anywhere a pipe comes up from the outside to the inside. They won’t chew through the steel wool to get in.
Silicone baking mat – great for cooking in an RV.
Plastic containers. You know how you order a set of plastic containers, and you get 1 big one and 10 little ones that might hold a bag of M&M’s? I hate that!! I ordered these two items below and got the sizes I really needed.
Plastic Containers 1 – Again, watch the sizes when ordering. I hate when I order something like this, and I get tiny little non-usable storage containers. This has many big, usable containers. The only complaint I do have is that I dropped two of these once, and both of them cracked. They are made of very hard plastic, so they do crack if dropped. I’d still buy them again!
Plastic Containers 2 – Best containers I’ve ever owned! They are big, and I keep all my pasta and rice inside.
Whew … you got all that? If you check out our other blogs about organizing your whole RV, you might find some other tips and tricks too.
2021 update! It’s been 4 years on the road! We have many tips and ideas on the blogs below for organizing your RV.
- The Best Tips for Organizing Your RV Stuff
- 25 (More) Must-Have RV Accessories
- RV Accessories for the Kitchen
- RV Accessories for the Bathroom
- Tackling the Spice Cabinet in Your RV or Any Other Tiny Space. We Have Solutions!
- What To Do With Photos When Downsizing
- What To Do With Sentimental Items When Downsizing
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Thank you for all of these tips they will be very helpful as I stock my tiny little kitchen.
Glad they helped! 🙂 Very happy to hang out with you two sometime soon.
We have many of these! I need to make my own list.
Thank you for having such all inclusive information available.
WOW! Thank you for taking the time to say so. I remember when we were trying to find information on full time RVing and how to set up our trailer and where to go and what to see and where to camp, and it was almost impossible. I’m trying little by little to cover all those things. Glad you got some valuable information from it. Have a great week!
You seem to do a lot of cooking then. Here everyone says dont cook in your RV ss it makes it smell. So they always cook outside. Your thoughts??
We cook a lot in our RV. Just like we did at home. And it doesn’t smell. Actually, food smells seemed to stay in our regular house longer than our RV. We also tend to stay in “warmer” climates so our windows and doors are always open with fresh air coming in. Plus we have a fan which sucks out the air. I am kind of a neat freak so having my house smell “other than good” would drive me insane. Don’t worry about it … just live!! Cook, bake, whatever you would normally do you can do in your RV.