Stop the Tetris game...

When it comes to storing food in your fridge, it may be somewhat of a fight, considering that most new flats in the capital only come with half fridges, very often under the counter, which means that it is nearly impossible to store more than 2 days worth of fresh food at a time. Having viewed about 150 flats in the last 2 years also, it appears that the message to the working-class is loud and clear: "Pay premium price to live in London, but be glad you're living in a chicken cage!" with kitchens, simply a wall made of a couple of cupboards, a sink, a cheap oven (don't be fooled by the glamorous brand, the appliances you have are the cheapest of that brand!), a small fridge/freezer, a washing machine, if lucky a small dishwasher and an electric hob. Some flats do not even have an extraction fan, or have one of those that spread the air to everywhere around the flat, projecting fat residues to just about everywhere the vents are directed to. 

So what can you do when your fridge is so small and you have to make everything fit?
Well, one thing to remember that liquids tend to spill down, so never ever place fresh meat or fish at the top, always on the bottom shelf, inside a glass container or on a plate. It is always preferable to remove all packaging to prevent cross-contamination with fresh produce in your fridge. remember that dozens, or probably hundreds of hands have touched that particular item. It had to leave the factory, be transported here and there, delivered to a store, handled many times before it reaches the aisles, including shoppers (having touched just about everything else, including their face and dirty trolley handles), and placed in trolley that have never seen soap since they were made.

At the very top of the fridge place all chutney, jam jars and sauces, perhaps eggs too, if you like to keep them in your fridge. 
On the second shelf from the top, place all cooked stuff, including cheese and other dairies. 
On the last shelf, place all raw food, but do not mix raw meat, raw fish or vegan foodstuff together.
In the baskets at the bottom of the fridge place all your vegetables, salad and leaves, and some fruits. You do not need to keep potatoes and avocados in the fridge. They are perfectly fine at room temperature. So that you have enough space for what can quickly spoil like fresh salad leaves. 
If you have enough space on the door shelves, place all dairy/non-dairy milks, oils (especially, linseed/flax seed oil and olive oil. THEY MUST BE STORED IN YOUR FRIDGE AT ALL TIME, or better yet, in your freezer if you have space. Why? Click here)

if in doubt refer to our previous article with our home cook 'cheat sheet' where you can see an illustration of fridge filling, storage times and more.