Cooking with cannabis is a great way to make delicious dishes. Cooking with cannabis is an art form. There are plenty of recipes that use cannabis as an ingredient, and it’s fun to experiment with how different combinations affect the taste and effect on your body.
Many people are interested in how to cook with cannabis and how they can make cannabutter. Don’t be discouraged if you’ve never cooked with cannabis before. Many things can go wrong, but there are also plenty of mistakes that you can avoid.
It’s not as complicated as it seems to make cannabutter, and there are a few things that you should know how to do beforehand so that your cooking goes smoothly. The article discusses how to avoid five common mistakes when cooking with cannabis and making cannabutter.
Top 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Cooking with Cannabis
1. Not Decarboxylating the Cannabis
It’s essential to decarboxylate your cannabis before adding it to a recipe. Decarboxylation is the process of getting rid of CO² from cannabinoids, and this creates more potent edibles that have a more substantial effect on the body. When you smoke or vape, decarboxylation happens naturally because heat converts THCA into THC.
If you want your edibles to be strong, decarboxylation is necessary when making cannabutter or cooking with cannabis in general. If baking soda and water are added to the recipe, decarboxylation occurs even without heat because an acid-base reaction takes place that converts THCA into THC.
“Decarboxylation is necessary when making cannabutter or cooking with cannabis in general.”
2. Over-Grinding or Over-Processing the Cannabis
It’s important to break up your cannabis into small pieces when using it in edibles. Grinding or processing is not recommended because this releases chlorophyll from trichomes and turns them green, which can give an unpleasant flavor to food. If you want a smooth texture without grinding your weed too finely, you can use a coffee grinder to break it up into small pieces.
“Grinding or the processing is not recommended.”
3. Using Too Much Cannabis When Cooking with Marijuana
Using too much cannabis when cooking with marijuana can result in a very potent product that may be unpleasant to eat. If you’re using dried flowers, it’s best to use between 0.25 -0 .75 grams per serving depending on how strong you want your edibles to be.
“It is recommended to use between 0.25 -0 .75 grams per serving.”
If you’re using a cannabis concentrate, it’s best to start with 0.05 -0 .15 grams and adjust accordingly depending on how strong your end product is. If eating an edible that contains THC extract, less will have a stronger effect than if you were smoking or vaping the same amount of weed.
When you’re cooking with marijuana, it’s easy to use too much because the taste is undetectable. The effects of edibles are dependent on how much cannabis has been added to them and if you add too much, your dish could be dangerous.
“The effects of edibles are dependent on how much cannabis has been added to them.”
4. Infusing Cannabutter Without Water
Most people don’t realize that they need to add water when making cannabutter. Water is necessary because THC and cannabinoids bind better with fat than with alcohol or glycerol, which are ingredients found in most infused butter on the market.
“Water is necessary because THC and cannabinoids bind better with fat.”
Without adding any liquid, you’ll end up with extremely potent cannabutter that is difficult to cook with. If you want a stronger weed butter, try using less liquid rather than none at all because this will give your edibles more flavor.
The reason why many people prefer infusing their cannabutter with water is that it prevents the butter from being scorched. If you’re using a double boiler, add enough cold liquid to come up about an inch (25 mm) and set your heat source to low-medium so that none of the water boils away.
“If you want a stronger weed butter, try using less liquid.”
5. Limiting Your Marijuana Cooking to Baked Goods
Baking is the most popular way to cook with marijuana because it’s easy and doesn’t require a lot of effort. That being said, there are so many other weed recipes that can be used in edibles such as:
“There are so many other weed recipes.”
- Hot sauces or salsa made from fresh cannabis leaves instead of dried flowers.
- Butter, oil, or mayonnaise infused with cannabis.
- Salad dressings are made from weed instead of hemp seed oil.
- An infusion of fresh popcorn in a mixture of cannabutter and nutritional yeast flakes” is used to make “popcorn chicken” or “popcorn shrimp”.
- Cannabis cola.
- Grilled cheese sandwiches with a layer of pesto and cannabis ricotta between the bread.
- Pot brownies, cookies, and cakes (except for those made from boxed mixes).
A Perfect Cannabutter Recipe
All of these recipes are easy to make and will ensure that you never run out of weed cooking ideas.
“All of these recipes are easy to make.”
To create the perfect cannabutter, follow this recipe:
Ingredients needed:
A pound (454 grams) of unsalted butter or two sticks. 28g of finely ground cannabis. A large saucepan.
Steps:
Gently heat the butter over a very low heat so it doesn’t burn, until it starts to become clear and has stopped bubbling. Add your finely ground weed into the melted butter and stir well with a wooden spoon for five minutes or until all of the marijuana has been absorbed into the butter.
Keep stirring for another five minutes then remove from heat and allow to cool down slightly. Pour your mixture through a cheesecloth or metal strainer lined with a paper towel over a large glass bowl to extract all of the cannabutter, squeezing gently until there’s no more liquid left in the pan. Transfer to a glass jar and store in the fridge.
Mixing Your Cannabutter into Other Recipes
Now that you have the perfect cannabutter, it’s time to start cooking! The best way to use your cannabutter is by mixing it into other recipes.
“The best way to use your cannabutter is by mixing it into other recipes.”
Start with something simple like brownies or cookies and work up from there! Using this butter in baked goods will give them a more intense flavor than if they were made using regular old butter.
“Using this butter in baked goods will give them a more intense flavor.” “Simply substitute any recipe (besides those for boxed mixes) with an equal amount of cannabutter!” When infusing food with cannabis, timing can be everything so make sure not to cook on the high setting.
“When infusing food with cannabis, timing can be everything.”
For example, A standard dose of medical marijuana is about 15 milligrams (mg) and the average joint contains approximately 0.25 grams or roughly one half a gram; however, there’s no way to know how strong your edible will be until you try it so go slow! If you cut your brownie into 16 pieces, each piece should contain around five mgs which is more than enough for an adult-sized dose although this type of edible isn’t recommended for beginners as they are very potent! Marijuana-infused foods that aren’t baked usually have shorter shelf lives because THC doesn’t bond well with non-fatty ingredients but if stored in the freezer, they can last for up to six months.
“If you cut your brownie into 16 pieces, each piece should contain around 5mg which is more than enough for an adult-sized dose.”
There are many marijuana recipes that can be found online but it’s always a good idea to first consult a medical marijuana doctor and/or dispensary for information on what strains are best used for cooking or if you have any other questions before getting started. Good luck!