Milling vs buying gluten-free flour

[TheBajan]

Hello... 3 weeks ago I was diagnosed with Celiac. Looking at the various flours used to replace traditional flour is a bit overwhelming. I have a Retsel grain mill and I'm considering milling my own gluten-free flour. I have a few questions. First and foremost, would it be cost effective? Obviously, buying flour already processed is more convenient but terribly expensive. Does anyone here have experience with how accessible the ingredients are to do the milling yourself? Rice is readily accessible as well as many varieties of beans. What about milling coconut flour and some of the more exotic flours? Secondly, I'm wondering if milling at home will produce a fine enough product to be comparable to what can be purchased in store. Any experiences or suggestions would be appreciated.

[squirmingitch]

The very first question is....

Was that Retsel grain mill used for gluten before your diagnosis? If the answer is yes then the 2nd question is can it be COMPLETELY DISASSEMBLED and cleaned in every single nook & cranny? If the answer to that is no, then you can't use that grain mill because you will be continually cross contaminating yourself. 

3rd question:

Will that mill do things like coconut? The grains that are oily. Some mills won't. Better check that out.

I got a NutriMill & it can not do oily grains or things like coconut. No oats as they're oily, same for nuts. Rice flour it does a great job on & gets it as fine as I can buy it.

[TheBajan]

It has never even been turned on. As I recall, it is capable of milling oats as well as popcorn. I don't know about coconut or other nuts but I can find out.

[squirmingitch]

Okay then you have a clean grain mill & can go to town. I have only done rice in mine because I found that either my husband or myself don't really car for the consistency or flavors imparted by things like coconut flour, nut flours, pea or bean flours. Mostly the hubs is the big stick in the wheel. I like nut flours but he doesn't. For rice flours, I would say it's cheaper to mill them but it's also messier & more time consuming. I understand my NutriMill is far less messy than most millers (according to reviews) but it's still messy. In fact, I take it outside when I'm going to use it & let the mess be out there until all the grinding is done. So for me, it's a trade off & I would say about even steven.

[Fundog]

I don't have a mill "yet" so I've been using a food processor.  That might be a better option for your softer, oily mediums like nuts.  There are a lot of instructional videos and blogs out there.  That's how I learned I could use my food processor.  To get my rice a bit finer, I sift it and run it back through several times.  Even with a mill, using a sifter would be a good idea and help you get a finer grind.