The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

sifting freshly milled flour

twcinnh's picture
twcinnh

sifting freshly milled flour

I'm beginning to look at different grain mills to mill my own flour (for personal use).  I suspect I'll need something to sift this flour depending on what I'll be baking. 

What do others use to sift their milled flour; size of mesh as well as size of seive?  Any feedback or suggestions are welcome.

 

Regards, and thank for this great site.

 

Tom C

Isand66's picture
Isand66

I just got a mill and my requests for information have turned up that you would want a #30 and a #50 drum type sieve.

twcinnh's picture
twcinnh

Thanks for that feedback.

 

Tom C

subfuscpersona's picture
subfuscpersona

I'm not sure why you want to seive your flour. Some do it because they want to create a high extraction flour, which is a flour from which some of the bran has been removed. Some do it because they have a less expensive mill that cannot create a fine flour in a single pass. Some people want to seive out the coarser bits (which is mostly bran) and then they remill the coarse bits into a finer flour and add it back into the flour. If you just want a fine, 100% whole wheat flour for baking, it's best to get a mill that is designed to do this in a single pass. The micronizer mills are good for this.

A number of grain mills for the home are designed to mill your grain into flour in a single pass. They explicitly say in the instructions that they *cannot* re-mill grain (it will damage the mill). These include micronizer design mills (Nutrimill, Whisper Mill) and the Lee Household Flour mill. So you want to check the mill's capabilities.

In general, most mills that use the design of a fixed grooved plate and a rotating grooved plate (and are adjustable) can remill coarser grain. Examples of these mills are the Komo/Fidibus mills (many models available) and the Retsel.

If you want a mill that will allow you to make high extraction flour, then an electric mill of the design I mentioned is your best bet. Prices for these types of mills start at about $400. Check out http://www.breadtopia.com/ for a good selection of these types of mills. This site has a good reputation on TFL.

Best of luck. Let us know what you decide on.