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Grinding Flour In Our Nutrimill

Meet my new kitchen “tool.” Hi Nutrimill! I say “tool” loosely because it’s currently still a toy – I like playing with it. I get giddy……I wake up early and I get giddy with excitement over a mill – I think I was born after my time. So, I thought all of you should get acquainted with our new family member since you already know everyone else. The Nutrimill grinds grain into flour. Remember I said we were making all our own bread products now? This is just the next step in Healthy Eating for us. I did tons of research before I bought this baby. I read everything I could find and I picked my friend Stephanie’s mind. I’m sure that she’s wishing Stacy would just go away. I’m like a boomerang that keeps coming back. We decided on the Nutrimill instead of the other various mills on the market because it was supposed to be the quietest, have the biggest storage container, and you can turn it off while it’s grinding (unlike some of the other models).  By now you know that only crazy things happen when I’m trying to cook, so I needed that option – Dottie will throw up or Annie will “clean” the toilet. 

I purchased the mill from Paula’s Bread. She has really great customer service and she offers free shipping…..y’all know how I feel about free stuff. Don’t get sticker shock. We paid $260 for our mill. I saved for a bit and we paid from extra money so we didn’t take from our checking account that’s being utilized to kill the house payment. Stacy and “her” money are not soon parted, so you know that I really wanted this thing. Barry was on board too. We listened to The Bread of Idleness CD from Bread Beckers and were convicted that we should start milling out own wheat. The CD is free, so if you’re considering switching to grinding your own wheat, I would highly recommend it. Let’s grind something!

These are wheat berries…..they make flour. It’s amazing to me. I’m glad Annie can watch this process so she realizes that you grind flour and it’s not magically made at the store. I bought these from Earth Fare but I do hope to order from Bread Beckers this fall. Bread Beckers is very reasonably priced and they have good quality grain from everything I’ve read. Stephanie orders from there too……yep, it’s the boomerang again. I could go into great detail about all the different kinds of grain you can buy and what they do, but I’m not an expert at that. I have ground hard white wheat, hard red wheat, and oat groats. I might try different grains in the future, but this was what we went with first. Here is a good explanation of the types of wheat, but you can mill all sorts of stuff – like popcorn and millet. The possibilities excite me……I think I might need a sedative.

First you pour your grain into the top of the canister. One cup of grain makes about 1 ½ cups of flour. For us, we only mill what we’re going to use that day. Freshly ground grain needs to be used pretty soon or the nutrients will start to oxidize. You can freeze it to slow the process down, but I like to reserve my freezer for other stuff like strawberries and other produce. Freshly-ground grain keeps all the nutrients….when you buy it in the store, they’re almost all gone – the flour has been ENRICHED. That just means that most of the good-for-you stuff is gone so they had to add part of it back in. Yummy.

Once you pour your grain in, you can start the motor. The settings on the motor and the feed rate determine how fine your flour is. For coarse flour, you turn to the right (think cornmeal) and for fine flour you leave it on the left. The faster it feeds in, the more coarse the flour. When you turn it on, it’s going to be loud. Remember I said it was “quiet?” Well, quiet is a relative term. This one is quiet compared to others. It is louder than a blender…..but quieter than a chain saw. How’s that? If you put the lid on, it’s quieter. After it’s done, let it keep going for a few seconds to eliminate any flour left in the chamber.

When it’s done, you just pull the handle to bring out the canister. It’s virtually dust free. Nice! I hate dusting…….I wish I could train Dottie to dust the house.

This is the canister out of the mill. The lid is very tight fitting, hence the low amount of dust. The black thing on top is the filter. You’ll wash the canister when you’re done, by hand….not in the dishwasher. Once when I was young, I gave my Grandmaw a set of cow salt and pepper shakers. She washed them in the dishwasher and then they lost all their spots. It was a sad day. They were naked.

Ta da!!!! Isn’t that just amazing? I’m amazed. You should be too. It’s cool.

It looks just like store flour, but it’s GOOD for you.

I made a batch of Light Bread with this…..and it was DELICIOUS! As you can see, we dug in pretty fast. It really makes the best bread you’ll ever taste. Now when we eat store bread we’re like “Gosh……this tastes…….weird.” And not weird in a good way, but weird in a bad way like a stalker or something.

So, that’s our new mill. I <3 it. Any questions?

 

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Comments

  1. What recipe do you use for spelt bread. I find the recipes I’ve tried don’t turn out as well when using fresh milled flour. It has more moisture. I’d love to get a tried and true recipe for spelt.

    Reply

  2. I didn’t even know regular people could grind their own flour! I wandered over to your site from a crockpot recipe and poked around–I must say that you’re the first blogger I’ve read who can throw in a random religious quote and make me laugh! (Christian bloggers seem to be soooo serious.)

    You’ve got a new subscriber. Keep up the good work!

    Reply

    • Can I ask another question? 🙂 Is it Gwen’s recipe and what wheat berry do you use? We really like spelt here. Thanks!

      Reply

  5. With THM are you still grinding wheat. I have had a mill for years and used many Bread Becker recipes but since THM have not made bread. My family misses it. :/

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  6. I’m so glad I found this post! I just got a NutriMill this week. I made my first ever loaf of bread with wheat I ground into flour. I used a bread maker, which made it easy for me…but it was so yummy and everyone in my family liked it (I have 5 kids at home, and that is saying something).

    I am also trying to transition our family to eating real food and getting rid of processed junk. This is just one step in that process. I am new to all of this and so I am trying to gather as much info as I can. I learned a lot from your post and from the comments that followed.

    I just stocked up on my food storage wheat (in #10 cans). I bought half hard red wheat and half hard white wheat. I have read here and other places that most seem to prefer the white. I guess I should’ve researched before I committed to the red. I am definitely going to get some soft white now. I didn’t realize it would make a difference with making things like cakes and such.

    Thanks, I am going to go check out your site some more.

    PS – I originally found your site because my friend posted your recipe for Crock Pot Chicken Fajitas on Facebook. I can’t wait to try them.

    Reply

  7. Hi Stacy! I know this is a long overdue comment since this was posted in 2011. But I was wondering what type of wheat berry you use? I blend our wheat in a blentec blender and my bread comes out dense and dark red. I think our grain is red hard wheat

    Reply

    • We don’t care for red wheat. I have used a lot of hard white spring wheat…currently I’m working through 50 pounds of spelt berries and we love them!!

      Reply

  8. Tax return money is here–and some of those budgeted funds are going to be used to get my brand spankin’ new Nutrimill! WHOOT!! AND–to save on shipping costs–I found that my little local Amish store sells them. And I need to go pick up a couple things anyway….

    Quick question: I notice you said millet and popcorn–I’m assuming you can do rice and quinoa flours too? Anything DRY, in other words?

    Reply

    • You can’t using anything oily…like nuts. The Nutrimill comes with a little book and tells you all the different things you can mill. You’ll love it!! 🙂

      Reply

  10. I’m VERY excited to have received a NutriMill as a Christmas gift this year!! And have used it to make your honey oat bread as well as pizza dough! However, I’m wondering, do you wash the canister after each use? I’ve noticed that the lid has gotten quite hard to open after washing it. This time I did dust the seal with flour as the directions say, but then wondered if maybe I am over doing it by washing the canister after each grind? Any other tips are welcomed too =)

    Reply

    • Nope – I hardly ever wash it. Only if I feel like it’s getting dirty. I just wipe it out with a tea towel each time and leave the flour on the seal – otherwise it’s a booger to open…as you found out. 🙂

      Reply

  12. I am contemplating ordering a flour mill but I am concerned with the flour size. I bake a lot and whenever I use store bought whole wheat flour my cakes just dont turn out right meaning they dont rise like regular white cake flour would. Im concerned that if I start milling that the flour will not be fine enough and will be gritty. Has anyone experienced this? I especially cook pound cakes for the family. I just want the cakes to be healthier.
    Second question, (sorry for the length), can I store the soft wheat at room temperature and how long can it get stored? I stumbled across your website and you have some great information and it has me really excited to get my family to eating healthier. I want to start baking our own bread. Thank you so much for having this site!!! lots of great information!!

    Reply

    • I’ve never noticed a gritty texture in anything I’ve made…you can control the fineness of the flour using the dial on the front.
      I don’t care for store bought whole wheat flour either – it makes everything VERY dense. If I do buy flour at the store, it’s white wheat flour – preferably the King Arthur brand. You might want to try it first and see how you like it.
      Whole Wheat PASTRY flour is the same as milling soft white wheat berries. Once the flour is milled, it immediately starts to lose the vitamin content – so you make it as you need it or you can slow the process by storing it in the freezer. I always try to keep some in the freezer, but I do like to mill fresh.
      You can store wheatberries (unmilled) indefinitely…as long as they are stored correctly – safe from bugs and the elements. I store mine in 5 gallon buckets with gamma seal lids. 🙂
      Hope that helps! I’ll answer any questions I can for ya.

      Reply

      • When you mill soft white wheat berries in the Nutrimill, the result has the same texture as whole wheat pastry flour purchased from a store? This is the texture I’m looking for, so I want to be sure and get a mill that does exactly what I’m looking for

        Reply

        • It’s not the exact same texture – it can’t be because of the whole berry being ground. But I sub it for pastry flour all the time and it works like a charm!

          Reply

      • No dates showing so I don’t know how long ago this was posted.

        Feb 2017–get some 5 gal buckets with lids from your local U-Make-It wine stores. Only 2-3 $ and they work a treat. Been using them for several years now with no issues. I keep them in my cold cellar.

        I have three separate buckets: hard spring wheat, spelt and rye.

        Mix and match your flours when baking bread. Make sure you use unbleached white flour (have to buy that unless you want to spring for an expensive fine sieve to pull out the bran). My ideal ratio is 60% white with 40% of any other grain. OR 60% white and a mix of any other grain to make up the 40% figure.

        Reply

  13. I just ordered my Nutrimill! I’m so excited to get it next week and start grinding my own flour! How do you store your berries, and how much and how many different kinds do you keep on hand? Sorry for all the questions-I’m just looking for different ideas. Currently I bake four loaves of bread at once and store two in the freezer-we eat about two-three a week. Should I be buying 25 lbs or more of wheat berries at once?

    Reply

    • I think you’d be fine buying 25-50 pounds at once. I usually get 25 pounds of hard white wheat and 25 pounds of soft white wheat – they keep me stocked for several months, but I don’t make as much bread as you – I do make a lot of muffins, pancakes, etc though.
      I store mine in 5 gallon buckets with gamma seal lids. You can see my buckets and lids here: http://www.stacymakescents.com/long-term-food-storage

      Hope that helps! 🙂

      Reply

  14. Hi Stacy,

    I used my Nutrimill for the first time today. I used hard white winter wheat and set the mill to the finest setting. My flour was fine but had a little bit of grainy feeling. It was not like a flour from a store…. Does your flower come out super fine or does it also have a grainy feeling? Do you know whether I can ‘regrind’ my flour?

    Thanks

    Reply

    • The slightly “grainy” feeling is normal. I get that even if I grind it on the lowest setting. It’s because the whole part of the berry is in there. Just use it like normal flour. You won’t be able to tell at all in the finished product. 🙂 No need to re-grind…….and I’m not sure that would work anyway. Good luck! Let me know how your baking goes. 🙂

      Reply

      • You really can’t tell? I tried making banana cake once with freshly ground flour and the finished product was gritty. Nobody liked that. I had ground white wheat berries in my Blendtec but I’ve been afraid to try again because of the gritty stuff. I’ve heard that the Blendtec grinds about as fine as a grain mill. I sooo want to make my own flour!

        Reply

        • Hmmm. No, I’ve never been able to tell the difference. Neither has Barry. I always use the finest setting on my Nutrimill. I’ve never used another setting – so maybe the Blendtec doesn’t get it that fine? I’m not sure…..maybe someone with a Blendtec will chime in.

          Reply

      • I’ll keep trying and googling. I got excited one day and figured I could just sift it out and then realized I’d be sifting out the good stuff which is a reason for grinding my own to begin with. Maybe I’ll get it right one day!

        Reply

  15. Hey! I’ve been reading about how wheat flour looses like all of it’s nutrients over time so that kind of freaked me out and I’ve been trying to figure out this grinding my own flour business and I’m a little confused. Ok so some recipes call for wheat flour and bread flour. If I’m grinding my own flour do I just grind the wheat and buy the bread flour from the store? Or do you use something else in your wheat bread recipes? Also, what type of wheat berries do you buy? the hard winter red wheat? Thanks!

    Reply

    • Sarah, good questions. 🙂 I do not buy bread flour. If recipe states “bread flour” I just use what I have. However, the recipes I’ve been using lately are from “whole food” sites and just say “whole wheat flour.”
      I don’t buy Hard Red Winter Wheat. It makes bread a little more dense. I buy Hard WHITE Winter Wheat and Soft White Winter Wheat. I use the hard wheat for all my yeast breads. The soft wheat is for pancakes, muffins, cakes, etc (it’s like the equivalent of pastry flour). I want to try spelt very soon.
      You cannot grind your wheat very much in advance – it looses its mineral content. So, I just grind what I need for the day. Some say that you can grind it and put it in the freezer to slow down the process. I do have an “emergency” stash in the freezer, but I just choose to grind mine daily as I need it – and some days I don’t grind at all. If you leave freshly ground flour at room temperature for a few days, it will go rancid.

      Reply

      • What are the websites you get your bread recipes from? I made the switch back to whole milk today(I hope it doesn’t upset colten’s stomach. He had a hard time a while back with whole milk, but he could drink 2% just fine so hopefully he will do ok with this) and as soon as I use up all the so called butter I have we’ll be buying REAL butter 🙂 So we’re trying to use up what we’ve got before we replace it. Thanks for all your help! 🙂

        Reply

        • That’s the best way to go Sarah. 🙂 You’re doing great!
          I can send you the recipes via email that I’m using now. I’m working on a new one for the site.

          Reply

  16. I’ve been making bread for a few years now….I watched the webinar from GNOWFGLINS this week and learned that the whole wheat doesn’t absorb all the water for up to 30 min. By this time, you’ve added too much flour….making the bread denser….to solve this problem…let your dough rest in cycles…I add most of my flour, then let it rest for 20 min, come back, add more flour…let rest another 5 min…by this time I can tell if I have enough flour added or if I need to add a little more…then I let the machine do the kneading (or knead by hand)….tried it today and made the best, lightest bread I have ever made….looked just like store bought bread. My family said it was the best bread they had ever had…YEAH!!!!

    Reply

  17. Please advise Stacy. I am debating between the Nutrimill and the WhisperMill. Do you have a particular reason(s) why you chose the Nutrimill? They both seem to do about the same…except you can stop the Nutrimill…price is same…

    Thanks.

    Reply

    • Leslie, stopping the mill was a huge deal to me. What if I needed to stop and get the door? What if something went wrong? What if Annie put a penny in there? I mean, really……that stuff happens to me. 🙂 I have also heard that the Nutrimill is quieter, but I haven’t had anything to compare it too. Also, the Nutrimill has a larger canister, so it can hold more wheat as you grind it. That’s also a good perk. Make sure you order from Paula’s Bread to get free shipping! 🙂 Good luck! Let me know how it goes.

      Reply

      • Hey Stacy! I just ordered the NutriMill from Paula’s Bread! I am so excited…I have been bidding on them on Ebay and I am OVER that! I may become your “boomerang!” Sorry…

        Reply

        • YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m so excited for you! 🙂 Make sure you tell me about your first grinding experience. It ROCKS! 🙂

          Reply

    • Feb 2017–I got the Nutrimill because it does NOT need to be running when you add the grain (IIRC, the whisprmill does). Just pour the grain in the top then start the motor.

      Reply

  19. One of these is on my wish list, too. Maybe the NutriMill company will send you one to give away to your readers (especially one with a baking blog, lol). I’m a dreamer!! — Looking forward to seeing all the yummy stuff you’ll be baking with your flour. 🙂

    Reply

  20. I’m not sure if I’m more interested in the bread making or the entry for the napkins—-actually I’m really most interested in the bread eating!

    Reply

  22. Oh, I saw one of these AND a Bosch mixer at the bulk store last week…I was all shivery with excitement!

    Reply

  23. No, I would be sad if you went away. 🙂 I’m working on some notes for classes. Let me know if you have any suggestions. I figured for the first class, I would just concentrate on wheat in general with overall health benefits, basic bread and rolls, cornbread made with spelt and maybe a pizza crust. The advanced class could be for braiding, decorating and sweet breads maybe. And I have soap and canning notes too. 🙂

    Reply
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