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"  1. START FRESH First, take everything out. If it looks like Antarctica in there, unplug your fridge for a half hour; otherwise, just wet a sponge with hot water and scrub away sticky spots and ice crystals. Kinda smelly? Wipe the sides and bottom with a mix of baking soda and water. When you put your food back in, don&amp;#039;t cover the vent: Pros at Whirlpool and GE recommend leaving an inch or two of space in front of it to keep cold air flowing. 2. STORE SMARTLY Glass containers with airtight tops (Pyrex and TrueSeal both make them) are your most eco-friendly option for food storage--plus, you won&amp;#039;t have to transfer contents to anothercontainer to nuke them. Plastic tubs and Ziploc bags are fine too, as long as they&amp;#039;re freezer-safe. How will you know? For most brands, there&amp;#039;s an icon on the bottom or it says so on the packaging. 3. THINK IN PORTIONS You know you&amp;#039;re not going to cook that entire raft of Costco chicken cutlets at once (and thawing and re-freezing food sucks out the flavor), so wrap pieces individually in foil or plastic wrap, then stick them in a container. &amp;quot;This keeps in the juices of any kind of meat,&amp;quot; says Robert Wiedmaier, chef-owner of Marcel&amp;#039;s in Washington, DC. The same goes for soups and sauces: Divvy them into realistic servings before freezing for better taste and quicker defrosting. 4. SAVE THE DATE Stop playing Will-this-kill-me? every time you take out leftovers. Keep a roll of masking tape and a Sharpie in a drawer near your refrigerator. Every time you freeze something, write down what it is on the tape (trust us, you won&amp;#039;t remember if it&amp;#039;s cod or halibut), along with the date, and stick it on. ER visit averted! "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.redbookmag.com/home/advice/a13864/clean-fridge/>