Sifting flour | Imamother

pecan

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 4:11 pm

I decided to start sifting my flour after finding bugs in the heimishe brands that I bought.
What is the best kind of sifter and easiest?
I bought this one that has mesh and you have to move the flour around until it goes through and it takes forever. It is such a turnoff from baking, when I'm pressed for time as it is. I need a simple solution.

TzenaRena

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 4:31 pm

I don't buy the heimishe brands anymore. AFAIK, Lubavitch isn't Makpid on Yoshon. It's the Yoshon brands that have a high(er) level of infestation. According to BL - mashgiach of our Vaad HaKashrus - who I asked about this, it's not obligated to sift the not yoshon flour, but the yoshon needs to be sifted with the very fine mesh.

So for the other brands, I figure, a regular sifter is enough, which is what I do use.

I have the Pelematic, but it's not working that well, 'cause one of the rubber thingys on the legs fell off. The bowl sits too low, for the machine to work, if I take off the other rubber pieces. So meantime, I stay away from the heimishe brands, and buy other (approved) brands.

BennysMommy

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 4:46 pm

Aidelmom wrote:

put a spoon in the sifter. sift into a a garbage bag. keep the sifted flour in the freezer so that you have it ready when you need it.

what does a spoon do?

Aidelmom

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 4:52 pm

I'm not sure how it works exactly but my husband always puts a metal teaspoon inside and he says it's much easier and faster to sift that way. personally I don't bother with it.

TzenaRena

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 4:59 pm

I imagine you stir the flour with it, and it goes faster? about the garbage bag, I have a friend who does that, she holds the sifter in a garbage bag, and holding on to both, shakes. Although I don't like putting foodstuffs in garbage bags, they have a certain smell, and I read in the Pesach digest, and heard from other source that they have a non-kosher coating.

shanie5

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 5:15 pm

My sifter is from a store in bp-it was recommended by the challah lady. I dont know what store, but its a popular kitchen store. It takes only a few minutes to sift 5 lbs of flour. I sift every bag I use. I'm not makpid on yoshon, but when I need to use yoshon for s/o, I ask my neighbor who is makpid and they give me the codes and brands to look for-not the 'kosher' brands, but the regular ones like gold medal.

nylon

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 6:23 pm

I don't sift all my flour (I buy regular brands, and only sift if the recipe calls for it) but my favorite kind is the one where you turn the handle. Much faster. The squeeze types are slow and tiring.

pecan

Sun, Oct 10 2010, 9:42 pm

My gold medal flour also had bugs. If you buy in kosher stores, and the flour is sitting near each other, then bugs can crawl from one brand to the next.
So I want to buy in regular stores, but the sifter I bought doesn't squeeze or turn. You just have to shake it into a bowl that's underneath. Even with a spoon it took forever.
Is the electric one worth the money?

Marion

Mon, Oct 11 2010, 1:47 am

skinny wrote:

pelematic electric sifter! costs 60 bucks but pays for itself when u stop buying challah:)

I can't stand mine. It takes FOREVER. I know, the box says 2kg (5 lbs) in 15 minutes, but it takes almost an hour to do a single kg bag. Maybe it's the mesh? It's been like that since I bought it. And the noise!

ABC

Mon, Oct 11 2010, 2:46 am

My Rav says no need to sift if u buy flour from a store with a good turnover so the food hasnt been sitting on the shelves for a long time, you store the flour in the freezer, and when u open the bag, u look at the flour on the top, as if there have been any bugs in that bag, some/most will have come to the top of the bag (for air). If u see any at the top, the entire bag goes in the garbage.

I have never found bugs in my flour this way (nor did I find any when I previously sifted).

paprika

Sun, Nov 07 2010, 5:04 pm

I bought an electric sifter which broke within the year. Too pricey to replace yearly, so I bought by Thirteenth Avenue Hardware in Boro Park a 55 mesh sifter which is very large - 12" circumference, so the flour goes quite a bit faster than the small ones.

Instead of a garbage bag, I put a large parchment paper on the table.

The spoon serves the same purpose as banging on the sifter. When you put a spoon and bang, you get double mileage...

Aidelmom

Tue, Nov 09 2010, 2:03 pm

paprika wrote:

I heard that banging can ruin the sifter.

joy613

Tue, Nov 09 2010, 2:43 pm

Marion wrote:

skinny wrote:

pelematic electric sifter! costs 60 bucks but pays for itself when u stop buying challah:)

It sounds like you have a lemon of a sifter. Mine doesn't take more than 15 minutes. It must really be a nuisance to use yours.
And about the noise- if you put it on a towel it doesn't make as much noise.

amother

Tue, Nov 09 2010, 4:29 pm

k e/o...I am embarassed to ask this...and that is why I am anon. I am assuming since this is in kosher kitchen and not recipes, it has something to do with kashrus.
I grew up in a regular, frum (not modern, not 'chareidi'if u r israeli or 'yeshivish' if you are american...idk) household, and I never heard of sifting...outside of learning what the 39 melachos are! I thought it was a relic from the olden days. is it something that is for baking or s/t? I make challah every shabbos and I cant imagine using a sieve (that would be like a huge strainer right?) to pass all thouse pounds of flour thru before...that must take forever!
is this only in certain countries where like there is no FDA or something? what is e/o TALKINGA BOUT!???

BennysMommy

Tue, Nov 09 2010, 4:58 pm

amother wrote:

Don't be embarrassed. I hadnever heard of sifting the flour until I moved to Argentina....
I would venture to say that most Americans don't sift their flour.