Hi everyone!
  Crazy question - I have been baking cakes now and I have a problem cleaning my sifter - does anyone have an easy way to clean the metal sifters?  I have tried the dishwasher and very hot water - yet it is still tough to clean…I feel like I am missing a very simple concept of cleaning
Thanks!

The dishwasher works for me.  Important, of course, to make sure you’ve shaken out as much of the material as possible before washing it.

Make sure you dry the shifter well or it can get rusty.

Flour Girl - 12 March 2011 09:22 PM

Make sure you dry the shifter well or it can get rusty.

Not if it’s stainless steel.

Thanks…

CharlesT - 12 March 2011 10:09 PM

Flour Girl - 12 March 2011 09:22 PM

Make sure you dry the shifter well or it can get rusty.

Not if it’s stainless steel.

Mine was stainless and rusted but apparently it wasn’t 18/10 or even 18/8.  I put mine in the dish washer all the time. I now have a new one which I was and dry by hand. It, too, is stainless by I don’t really know how high is the quality.

Flour Girl - 13 March 2011 10:57 AM

Mine was stainless and rusted but apparently it wasn’t 18/10 or even 18/8.

I don’t recall ever having a piece of stainless equipment rust.  I know that it can, of course, under extreme conditions.  The corrosion resistance depends on a protective coating forming that’s a result of chromium reacting with the oxygen in the air, and this coating might be rubbed off, although it reforms quickly.  Here’s what the Specialty Steel Industry says about SS rusting:

3. Can stainless steel rust? Why? (I thought stainless did not rust!)

Answer: Stainless does not “rust” as you think of regular steel rusting with a red oxide on the surface that flakes off. If you see red rust it is probably due to some iron particles that have contaminated the surface of the stainless steel and it is these iron particles that are rusting. Look at the source of the rusting and see if you can remove it from the surface. If the iron is embedded in the surface, you can try a solution of 10% nitric and 2% hydrofluoric acid at room temperature or slightly heated. Wash area well with lots and lots of water after use. Commercially available “pickling paste” can also be used. See “The Care and Cleaning of Stainless Steel” for more information.

That is good to know. We do have a lot of iron in our water and have it treated.  I no longer have the old sifter but have been washing my new sifter by hand.  Next time I use it, I will start washing it in the dishwasher.

I find a sifter quite unnecessary. They take up a lot of space (I have an urban kitchen) & I noticed the cleaning issues with the one my mom uses. I do one of 2 things: use a wire whisk, or put the dry ingredients in the mixer & use its whisk (a food processor will do the same job as well). If you use a wire strainer for pasta, those can work nicely too.

There are two schools of thought here from what I’ve seen in pro kitchens, in person and on TV:

1. Don’t wash your sifter. Instead, give it a good shake and put it away. If you can keep it from getting wet or coming into contact with anything but flour this makes pretty good sense and is probably the most popular choice.

2. Get a top-grade stainless steel sifter, shake and hand wash (cold water keeps any flour from getting pasty and tough to remove), spraying with a high-pressure hose if you have one. I’ve often seen pastry chefs put their sifter in the oven on 300 degress or so to cook lumps of flour they can’t easily remove before washing.

And then there are those that’ll tell you to just get a sieve (often confused with a sifter), which is a lot easier to clean and potentially space saving, since it’s multi-use.

@CharlesT: thanks for the stainless steel chemistry lesson - I had no idea the brown stuff that prompts me to toss out expensive stainless steel equipment is not actually rust and completely removable.

Here is a few tips. First don’t put it in hot water, use luke-warm,  soapy water to loosen the hardened flour bits. Make sure you let it soak a while. Then to keep it from rusting towel dry it the best you can and put it in your oven on very low temp. Say about 275 or lower and allow it to dry for 5 -10 minutes. The next time just shake it thoroughly and try to get all the flower out but do not let it get wet or put it area where there may be moisture ( like above your sink) or even above or near the stove where there is steam.

Oh and I just bought a new pull apart sifter so that the top screen separates from the bottom and you can screw the flour catcher or container underneath the sifter. Awesome idea and easier to clean