Straining methods

[Breathemetal]

I hate cheesecloth. It holds too much oil.

What are some other good methods for straining butter/oil?

 

[wax]

A really fine mesh strainer man. Fine enough to hold plant matter back but large enough to get a the oil squeezed out.

 

[killick]

Wife picked up a great low profile strainer (fairly flat, not too deep) that was great for filtering the big pieces out after a quick wash. Then I ran it through a stainless steel permanent coffee filter and pressed liquids through with the back of a silicone spoon. Worked great on oil the other day and again on budder last night - all nice and clear this morning and ready for scones!

 

[puddleglum]

Try pre-saturating your cheesecloth with virgin oil, this ought to stop it from absorbing canna-oil.

 

[Maryjane Clurricane]

Puddle glum is right, you will loose less oil to the cheesecloth if you permeate it with olive or vegetable oil first. Cover the whole thing in oil and squeeze out any excess.

I put the cheesecloth in a potato ricer and pour it through that. I let it naturally drain off as much as it can while I do something else, then I fold the edges of the cheesecloth in like a ball, and use the lever action of the potato ricer to squeeze remainder like it's in a press until the plant matter comes out like a nearly dry puck. If I'm doing a big batch I'll scrape off the cheesecloth and use it again and continue.

When I'm done, I scrape off compost the plant matter, but I save the cheesecloth in the freezer in a Baggie as a cold herbal poultice. Okay, I admit the poultices may be a bit much, but the potato ricer makes straining the easiest I've tried so far, and it's not that hard on my arthritis.

 

[killick]

Just read on another thread about tincture where someone is using an Aeropress. It comes with a bunch of paper filters, but you can get a stainless permanent filter as well. It's likely too fine to use for budder on it's own, but perhaps you could slightly increase the diameter of the holes with a small drill? Just a thought...

 

[fft]

I've been using something called a superbag...above is a recent photo of it in action. Its basically a 100 micron filtration bag made for cooking applications. Here's the link:

http://www.modernistpantry.com/superbag-100micron.html

Reusable and dishwasher safe. Strong enough that you can squeeze it without worrying about breaking. Filtering is almost instantaneous... everything flows right through. At 100 micron filtration size, a tiny amount of sludge gets through that settles to the bottom but thats it. I also use it for cooking - straining stocks, squeezing water out of canned tomatoes to make a thick pizza sauce, basically anything you'd use cheesecloth for.

I think this is the same material used in bubble bags so another way to go is buying a single bubble bag (micron sizes go below 100 for those). The Magic Butter machines that have been recently popular ship with something similar for straining, though on these bags only the bottom part has the filter material.

 

[Magusprimal]

I have tasked an old Aeropress with a round piece of cheesecloth instead of the paper filter for this job (I tried the metal filter too but it was too fine), it is great for getting the maximum out of the abv and is about as mess free as the job can be.

 

[DieHard]

+1 for the Potato Ricer
Method as @Snappo posted. Also, pre-saturating the cloth with plain oil is key.

 

[Enchantre]

I went to the paint store and got a paint strainer bag...

... okay, I did this several years ago, when I was doing the raw vegan thing, and made a lot of nut mylks. The bags work great for straining oils, butters, and tinctures, too! it's not fabric, it's a form of plastic, I'm sure. Oh, and they cost about $3 each.

 

[Snappo]

+1 for the Potato Ricer
Method as @Snappo posted. Also, pre-saturating the cloth with plain oil is key.

It's a great suggestion, but I can't take any credit for it, as it wasn't taken from any post of mine I don't think.