The only downside is that the Rubbermaid lids are so tight that they can actually be hard to snap on all the way—it took a firm smack on our part to make sure every corner was fully closed in our testing. In contrast, Cambro’s 2- and 4-quart containers have a much smaller footprint than the larger sizes, so they can’t stack or line up neatly with larger sizes. The considerable width makes these Rubbermaid containers easy to scoop from, a benefit that frequent bakers especially will appreciate. If the Brilliance containers hit the floor lid-first, the lids are liable to pop off. by Michael Sullivan and Ganda Suthivarakom. Sometimes the containers have a tendency to stick when nested, but since most people keep their dry storage containers in constant rotation, we don’t think this is a huge deal. Cambro RFSCW12 12 qt Capacity, 14-7/8" Top Diameter x 8-3/8" Height, Camwear Clear Polycarbonate Round Food Storage Container (Cover Sold Separately) 4.7 out of … Although Rubbermaid claims the containers are also microwave safe, we’ve read reviews that suggest they warp or crack after being subjected to high heat. Good containers can also keep ingredients fresh and free of pests longer. Toni Hammersley, founder of A Bowl Full of Lemons and author of The Complete Book of Home Organization, interview, Sarah Carey, editorial director of food and entertaining at Martha Stewart Living, interview, Maria Speck, author of Ancient Grains for Modern Meals, interview, Dry Storage Containers, Cook’s Illustrated, May 1, 2016, The Best Food Storage Containers, Real Simple, August 29, 2014, Food Storage Container Reviews, Good Housekeeping, Emma Christensen, What Are the Best Airtight Storage Containers?, Kitchn, August 8, 2014, arvi, What do you use to store dry goods?, Chowhound forum, October 16, 2010. Both staffers bought these containers in response to finding some unwelcome visitors in their pantry (grain weevils and ants, to be precise), and are happy with how critter-free their cabinets have been since. Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 5:00pm When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. For people who have a spacious pantry or who regularly purchase ingredients in bulk, the Rubbermaid Commercial Space Saving Food Storage Containers are a great option. It also helps keep out pests like pantry moths, which can squeeze through surprisingly small spaces and multiply rapidly. They come in nine sizes, which fit one of three different lids. Without a good set of dry storage containers, a kitchen pantry can quickly get out of control. For Speck, it’s also “key to be able to see what we have.” Clear containers make it easy to take stock of what you have and how much of it. Cambro has grown into one of the industry's largest plastic manufacturers with its inventive CamKiosk, CamChiller, CamCarrier, durable storage containers, and glass racks. Even if you already have a set of dry storage containers, consider upgrading if you find yourself struggling to measure baking ingredients (or anything, for that matter) neatly and easily. But they felt flimsy, and one even broke during shipping. To keep things looking neat, Toni Hammersley, author of The Complete Book of Home Organization, recommends sticking to containers in three sizes: large for bulk ingredients like flour, medium for snacks like pretzels, and small for things like nuts. An airtight seal helps protect cereal, grains, and snacks from staleness, and keeps brown sugar or tender raisins from turning rock hard. Since most people want to buy quite a few containers, $20 was at the high end of anything we considered. While everything we tried was technically stackable, containers such as the Oggi Acrylic Canisters had a completely smooth lid, with nothing to keep the top container from sliding off the bottom at the slightest disturbance. In contrast, Cambro’s 2- and 4-quart containers have a much smaller footprint than the larger sizes, so they can’t stack or line up neatly … The lids were leaky in our tests, and the sizes large enough to fit 5 pounds of flour are wide and shallow, not the best shape for kitchen cabinets. Hammersley said stacking “can get in the way,” making ingredients “not as easily accessible.” Carey, however, said it could be useful “if you have a lot of stuff.” We think it’s good to at least have the option of stacking securely, especially if you have limited pantry space, and we restricted our testing to containers that appeared stackable. We’ve added long-term testing notes for our top pick, the Rubbermaid Brilliance Pantry Food Storage Containers. The 8.1-cup canister, designed specifically to hold spaghetti, is a bit awkward because it’s so tall and narrow. The plastic clasps on the Brilliance lids require multiple steps to open and close, compared with container designs that allow you to peel the lid off in one motion. Though we don’t recommend storing liquids or leftovers in these containers (we have a separate guide for that kind of food storage), their watertight seal is an indication of how well they’ll keep dry ingredients fresh. Rubbermaid’s lids fit much tighter than Cambro’s lids, which leaked profusely (a problem restaurants often solve by just wrapping the whole container in plastic wrap). Featuring high-quality solutions for self-service and front-of-house efficiencies from the biggest brands in commercial dining. However, we’ll continue to long-term test these containers to see if any problems arise. Show/Hide, Camshelving Premium® Series for North America, Camshelving Premium® Series Metric for Europe, Display and Serving We didn’t experience any of these issues when we microwaved them in our tests, but since we recommend them only for dry food storage, we don’t think this problem will even come up for most people. With opaque containers, you have to go to the trouble of making labels, and you’re still likely to forget about those expensive heirloom beans you bought. This website uses cookies in order to personalize your visit and for analytics purposes. Here’s a rundown of the requirements we think a good set of food storage containers should have: “You want the container to seal tightly,” said Sarah Carey, the editorial director of food and entertaining for Martha Stewart Living. Insulated Food Transport Of the many containers we have, one has developed a hairline crack. But they’re bulky and better for those with a lot of space. Show/Hide, Covers for Camtainers and Ultra Camtainers, Food Pans and Lids All the equipment and supplies to knock the dining experience out of the park! But for the most part these containers have held up well to lots of abuse, and the one with the small crack is still perfectly usable for things like organizing cake decorating supplies. Containers that come in a set are usually a better value per piece, but we should note that most sets count lids and bases as separate pieces, so an eight-piece set usually includes only four containers. These also come in graduated sizes that don’t stack well and shattered the first time we dropped them. Restaurant Dining Room Supplies & Bar Equipment. A narrow design allows the containers to stack nicely and fit efficiently into kitchen cabinets. As Maria Speck, author of Ancient Grains for Modern Meals, pointed out, moths occasionally hide in store-bought bags of grain or flour. Marguerite Preston, the original writer of this guide, has used the Rubbermaid Commercial containers in various sizes at home since 2017. If you plan to nest the containers when you’re not using them, keep in mind that they can be quite tall (for instance, the 16-cup and 19.9-cup containers measure about 14 inches high when stacked). Depending on what you store, you may not need to wash dry storage containers often, but a container should still be easy to clean, without tricky crevices. (Even better if measurements are marked on the outside.) We saw recommendations for the Lock & Lock Rectangular Food Containers in forums on Chowhound and Kitchn. “I’ve heard from so many people about how their cabinets are now infested,” she said. Dry storage containers should fit nicely in a kitchen cabinet. This is not a perfectly accurate test, since the pressure of water flowing out of a container is stronger than the pressure of air flowing in. Cambro has been dedicated to creating and providing the most durable, high-quality containers, Cambro food carts, and other proven plastic products for the foodservice industry since 1951. What Is Fresh Pet Food and Is It Actually Better. But we think the advantages of the tight-sealing lids will outweigh this flaw for most people. But if you make a habit of transferring all dry goods to containers with secure lids, those tiny stowaways can’t get out of control. As mentioned above, we’ve read a lot of customer reviews online that claim the Rubbermaid Brilliance containers warp, crack, discolor, or leak after microwaving. She uses her large and medium Rubbermaid containers for flour, sugar, cereal, rice, and pasta, but finds she has little use for the tiny containers “that are barely big enough for holding eight nuts.”, On the other hand, Wirecutter’s community support lead, Erin Price, actually loves the tiny containers and plans to buy more. Oggi’s Acrylic Canisters looked nicer than most of the containers we tried, but the hardware felt flimsy. OXO’s Pop Containers are hugely popular on Amazon and came recommended by Real Simple. Cambro has grown into one of the industry's largest plastic manufacturers with its inventive CamKiosk, CamChiller, CamCarrier, durable storage containers, and glass racks. They also pour easily and fit a measuring cup well. And round containers waste more space than rectangular ones. They look nice, and the lid is easy to open with one hand, but otherwise they aren’t worth the price. Show/Hide. We didn’t consider hand-wash-only to be a dealbreaker simply because these containers don’t need to be washed on a daily or even weekly basis. Show/Hide, Insulated Front Loading Food Pan Carriers, Insulated Beverage Transport To test sturdiness, we filled each container with 2 pounds of beans and slid each off a counter onto a tile floor so that it landed sideways.